Satyrkind
by Peony-princesa
Summary: "If I'm the darkness, you're the moon." Mythological/Fantasy AU Rey doesn't know who or what she is. Raised by a village of fauns but not really one of them, she craves answers. Kylo Ren is a mysterious shapeshifting warlock who may have answers for Rey, but his knowledge comes at a price. Will his darkness consume her light?
1. Chapter 1

For as long as Rey could remember, she'd been warned to stay away from the dark forest that stood to the east of her village, and stretched out to the north and south as far as the eye could see. It was densely populated with tall firs and pines that grew taller and taller as the forest progressed, eventually blotting out the sunlight, to the point that when the sun was shining bright and full in a cloudless sky outside the forest, within only reached twilight.

There was no place in that forest for those who loved the sunshine, she was told; evil lurked in that place, and only those who had bad intentions, who fled from the sun's truth-seeking light went there. Anyone purposely going to that place had something to hide, her mother, Nara, told her as she tied Rey's hair into the three little buns that denoted her status as an adolescent in her village.

She had been wearing the hairstyle for about three years too long; normally children her age would have discarded the badge of youth by that time, but Rey's village didn't measure maturity by the passing of years, but rather by the growth of their horns.

Rey had grown up in a village of fauns. Each spring, the village elders would take the children who's horns had broken through, and measure them with an Alder branch that was whittled and painted into several sections, each denoting a phase of life. Rey had passed each phase normally, until her horns had stopped growing just shy of the length of maturity. No one could tell her why her they weren't progressing like the others; her horns had broken beautifully the year she turned ten, and had grown at a normal rate up until her fourteenth year. Since then, there had been no change, and the elders had refused to acknowledge her as a young adult.

Small horns weren't the only trait that set Rey apart from the rest of her village; she also lacked the hooves and fur covered lower body that characterized a normal, healthy faun. In fact, physically, Rey appeared to be almost entirely human, aside from three factors: the first was the small set of horns that sat high on her forehead, almost obscured by her dark brown hair; the second was her pointed ears, and the third, was her tail. All fauns have tails of course, but they always imitated that of a sheep or goat-covered in fur, usually with a long tuft at the end. Rey's tail was exactly like a horse's tail-consisting of long, flowing hair, matching the hair on her head.

It had not been hidden from Rey that she was not born of the fauns; she had been told her story from childhood: she had been left on the doorstep of her mother's hut as a newborn, wrapped in a blanket with nothing to identify her parentage. The village had hesitantly allowed Rey's adoptive mother to keep her, as it was clear from Rey's small tail, that she was not wholly human, and children were seen as a blessing not to be denied. Had she been a human child, Rey's mother assured her, she would not have been allowed to stay. They would have probably left her on a road frequented by the humans, seeing as the fauns were not cruel folk, but bringing a human into their ranks was strictly forbidden.

The other fauns had quickly grown to love her, and she grew up in a nurturing, supportive environment. Despite all this, deep down in her heart, Rey still felt like an outsider; for many years she held out hope that her toes would someday fuse together into hooves, and that her legs would sprout a thick coat of fur, so that she could truly be a faun like everyone else.

It wasn't just her small horns and lack of fur that separated Rey from the other fauns, she had been noticing subtle differences from when she was very young; she had always loved the nighttime better than they day, and spent hours longing to go frolicking in the moonlight until sunrise. Whenever her friends played games in the meadows, Rey preferred to hang back in the shade, out of the sun's oppressive glare; she found a certain peace and feeling of safety in the shadows cast by the trees.

Even though he fauns had embraced Rey, they were exceedingly distrustful of anyone who was not a faun; they communed with the trees, plants and animals, but rejected all contact with humans and other hybrid creatures. This distrust had led them to avoid the deep forest; they knew that strange creatures lived there, and had witnessed humans flee there after committing horrible crimes. The fauns had learned long ago that the world of men lay on the other side of the dark forest; they also knew that anyone who entered it never returned again. These two pieces of knowledge inspired a healthy respect in the fauns, causing them to appreciate its existence, while dismissing all thought of going near it.

Rey often sat by herself, pondering the possibilities of her lineage; could she be human? she wondered. She had heard that humans had these weird things called toes in place of hooves much like she did. She wondered if she was perhaps half faun, and if that was why her horns were uncommonly small. If she was indeed human, what if her parents lived just beyond the dark forest; she had been taught that the forest protected them from the world of humans, and that no faun must ever go there, under the risk that the forest might not allow them to return. Rey wasn't truly a faun though, perhaps the forest would allow her safe passage.

She decided to talk it over with her mother that night when they were gathering for bed. It was a habit of theirs to chat in the evening when the stars came out and everyone else had retired; her mother always provided a willing ear, and Rey could pour out her heart without worrying about who might hear her. Nara was already sitting on her low stool by the fire when Rey came back from bathing in the river, ready to brush and braid her daughter's hair as she loved to do. She beckoned Rey to sit on the ground in front of her and began combing through her hair when Rey complied.

"Mama," Rey began "I want to find out what I am." I know who you are, you're my baby" Nara replied, giving Rey's hair a playful tug "You'll always be my baby." "I know that, mama," Rey groaned "But I'm not a faun, we both know that, and the elders are never going to acknowledge me as an adult because my horns just aren't growing anymore. What path can my life take if I have no future but that of a child?" Nara continued grooming her daughter's hair as she considered the meaning of her words. She began parting the girl's hair as she formulated her response "I know your words are true, dear one, and I have been worrying about your status with the elders since you reached your fourteenth year, and you're right, the elders will not deem you an adult, and that leaves you with very few options. There is nothing more I can tell you about your lineage than what I've already told you many times." She tilted Rey's head back to start sectioning her hair for the first braid "How do you plan to find out the nature of your species?"

Rey cleared her throat, knowing that her mother would not take what she had to say next without some degree of resistance, if not outright rejection; she chose her words carefully as she proceeded "Mama, you know the stories of all the creatures living in the deep woods, and how the world of man lies beyond..." She felt her mother's grip on her hair tighten ever so slightly "I was thinking, the creatures in the woods must be very old, they must have seen something like me in all the years they've passed, maybe someone in the wood could tell me, and if not, maybe in the land of humans..." Nara's breath hitched in her throat "Dear one, you are surely not thinking of journeying into the wood?" The alarm in her voice was undeniable, and Rey rushed to reassure her "Mama, I'll be so careful, you know the dark has never bothered me, and I'm the fastest runner, and I can be so quiet as I make my way through the forest, no beast will detect me if I don't want them to."

Nara rubbed a hand across her brow, her eyes looking very tired all of a sudden "I won't lie, I knew this day would come; I knew that you would feel the urge to find out all you could about who you are, though I always prayed that the gods would delay it for as long as possible" Rey's eyes widened at her mother's words "Y-you mean you won't keep me from going?" she asked incredulously, having expected to meet with much more resistance, and not quite knowing what to do, as she hadn't planned for this reaction.

"Yes, Rey, that's what I mean. Your sisters and I will miss you terribly, and I don't know that the elders will allow you to return to us, once you've gone; I hope you have thought this through and considered the consequences." Rey was silent for a few moments; she had definitely thought about the possibility of never returning to the safety of her village, and though it broke her heart to even think about never feeling her mother's strong embrace again, she couldn't remain there, while her sisters became adults and pursued their talents, while she remained a child in everyone's eyes, of no real use to anyone.

"I have to find out what I am. There's nothing else for it, mama, it's my only option. Maybe once I know, I can come back and prove my usefulness to the elders and all of you." Nara nodded, smiling through the tears welling up in her eyes "Well then, we have to plan this carefully. You know the elders will never allow this if they find out before you leave. You must go very soon, as soon as you are ready." "Yes, I know" Rey agreed "I was thinking day after tomorrow, in the evening, about this time, when everyone has gone to sleep."

Her mother bowed her head in agreement, taking Rey's shoulders in her grasp and turning her so they were face to face; she leaned in, touching their foreheads together "Gather what you need for food tomorrow, I'll make sure you have the necessary tools to take with you. Now my love, go and get your rest, you will need all you can get.

The time had come for Rey to leave her village and begin her quest to discover her true nature; she'd spent the day gathering berries and edible roots, knowing that her mother would have bread for her to take as well. They met on the edges of the village that evening to put her pack together and say their goodbyes. Nara quickly embraced her daughter and held out a small bundle "This is for you my love, the outside world does not abide by the same rules we do, and you must do your best to blend in." Rey opened the package to find a shift made of soft but durable fabric, a leather jerkin, and matching leather breeches. She looked at her mother quizzically "Clothes? Mother, they're lovely, but why do I need these?" Nara laughed, shaking her head at her daughter's naivety "Darling, we fauns don't wear undergarments because we have fur, and therefore have no need of them; you have no fur, and while that has never been cause for concern with us, you must cover yourself with more than your usual short smock. Trust me, you may hate clothing, but they will keep you warm, and also keep you safe."

She helped Rey shrug out of the simple tunic she usually wore, and that barely came down past her butt, and held it for her as Rey donned her new garments. She had gotten into the smock and jerkin without issue, but when she go to the breeches, she held them out in front of her, looking skeptically at her mother "Mama, how are these supposed to work? My tail will get in the way." Nara hid a chuckle behind her hand and motioned for Rey to turn around, she proceeded to braid Rey's tail just like she braided her hair before bed; once she was done, she turned Rey back around and took the breeches from her, showing her that in the back, there were laces like that of a corset, she untied and loosened the laces, then held the pants out and motioned for Rey to step into them. She then turned Rey away from her again, and pulled the laces to a comfortable tightness, and then tied them off.

Rey bent her knees and then lunged from side to side, swiveling her hips around to get the feel of her new restrictive garments. "I suppose they'll do" She remarked doubtfully "I really wish I didn't have to wear them, though" Nara patted her on the head "There, there, if the worst thing you have to endure is clothing, I will be a very happy mother." She handed Rey her pack and staff, taking a moment to look her daughter over one last time, bringing a hand up to stroke her face, and tuck a stray wisp of hair behind the girl's ear. Rey threw her arms around her mother in a tight embrace, trying her best, and ultimately failing, to suppress the sob that had leapt unbidden into her throat. Nara hugged her daughter tightly, neither of them wanting to let go, both of them knowing that they had to.

Nara broke free first, kissing Rey on both cheeks and the forehead "Alright, dear one, it's time." she whispered. Rey nodded, unable to articulate anything beyond a rasped out "I love you." With one last squeeze of her hand, she was gone, heading for the path that led to the deep woods at almost a run, afraid that she would lose her nerve at any moment.

After a while, Rey slowed her pace, having gotten far enough away from the village to be out of danger of turning back. She had almost reached the edge of the dark forest, and could see how the darkness within seemed so deep that she almost felt that she could reach out and touch it. It seemed to call to her, drawing her into the soft velvety embrace of its depths. She'd never been afraid of the dark; in fact it had always seemed like a refuge from the stark, blinding light of day, and she had often longed to explore the secrets it held.


	2. Chapter 2

Rey took several deep breaths to slow her rapid heartbeat; it wasn't fear that she was feeling, it was exhilaration; she was about to embark on her very first adventure, and wanted to dive right in.

After taking one last look behind her, Rey stepped forward, leaving the familiarity of home, and entering the unknown of the woods. The sun had long disappeared, but Rey was surprised to find that her eyes still had to adjust to the darkness as she progressed deeper into the forest; fortunately her night vision had always been exceptional, and she quickly identified a path to follow.

As she became more comfortable following the path she found, Rey was impressed by the almost complete silence of the place; she could make out no animal sounds, and saw no evidence of wildlife, she reasoned that the animals here had to have some kind of sleep cycle, just like the ones outside the forest, it was also possible that they had fled at the sound of her coming. Rey frowned at the latter possibility; the creatures that inhabited the woods surrounding her village were friendly and unafraid of her, she had spent countless hours of her childhood playing with the foxes, rabbits, deer, and other animals that lived nearby, she wasn't pleased at the idea of being feared by any living creature.

After a while, it struck Rey that she had no idea what exactly she was looking for, she had no real plan beyond getting into the deep woods, once there, she had no idea what to do. She quickly shrugged off those uncomfortable thoughts and chose to believe that whatever or whoever she was supposed to find would come to her sooner or later.

Rey couldn't pinpoint the exact moment that she first felt it, but as soon as she was sure of what she felt, she knew that it had been going on longer than she had been aware of it: someone or something was watching her. She had tried to explain away the prickle she felt at the back of her neck as the cool breeze that swept through the trees at irregular intervals, but she was soon sure that she felt it even when there was no breeze. At that moment, she caught a glint of golden yellow light out of the corner of her eye; it was only a sliver, but Rey felt that if she could only get to it, she might be able to get some shelter.

As she made her way toward the light, Rey couldn't help but feel uneasy; normally, she would expect such a light to be comforting, but there was something she didn't trust about it. For one thing, the light wasn't appearing to get any larger as she approached, it just remained a small sliver in the night. Another thing that bothered her was that the light seemed alive somehow; firelight had a cheerful aura about it, it let off warmth and reminded her of her mother. This light had a green hue to it, and Rey had the strange feeling that it was looking back at her. The suspicion in the back of her mind nagged and nagged at her until she was about a yard away from the mysterious light. If she took three more steps closer, she felt that she could reach out and touch it, but she still couldn't make out its form or origin.

While she stood there staring at it, trying to decide what to do, Rey was shocked when the light began to move. It had started to rise, and as it reached her eye level, it began to move the right, out from behind a tree, revealing its true shape; Rey was struck with horror and dread as she realized what she was seeing: the sliver of yellow light tinged with green and gold had become a huge glowing eye with a vertical black pupil which stared unblinking at her, as another eye, its twin, was revealed. Rey felt the urge to scream welling up in her throat as the head of an enormous black adder reared itself, weaving back and forth as it approached her, never breaking eye contact.

Rey had never encountered such a creature before; there were snakes that lived in the areas surrounding her village, but they were all harmless and kept to themselves. This monster was almost as big as she was, and was bearing down on her in a manner that was anything but friendly. Rey made the snap decision that she didn't care to find out if the reptile had sinister motives, and, just as it had come within arm's length, she whirled around and fled. With no thought to the direction she was heading in, Rey ran for what felt like hours, leaping over fallen trees, and trampling through streams and mud until she was wet through, and every ragged breath she drew felt like it was tearing itself from her chest.

By this time, she was desperately looking for some kind of shelter, somewhere she could take refuge to rest and figure out what to do next. She had just torn herself free from the thousandth thicket, and was rounding the curve of a small hill when she collided with something tall, solid, and unyielding, hooded and wrapped in long black robes. It's stalwart nature refused to absorb her momentum, and she fell to the ground. The responding "Oof" told her it was a person; a conclusion that was immediately confirmed when two large, strong hands grasped her by the shoulders and hauled her up from where she was sprawled ungracefully on the forest floor, and a deep voice drawled out "Well now, what do we have here?"

Rey scrambled away a few paces, babbling apologies, while desperately trying to dust herself off. In her confusion, she hadn't even glanced at the man's face, all she had sensed so far was that he was exceptionally tall, and that he towered over her; now, having composed herself a bit, she turned to thank him for helping her up, and maybe ask him for help figuring out where she was. Rey lifted her gaze to his face, and her heart froze.

He'd pulled back his hood, revealing a long, pale face with a prominent nose and sensitive lips; the expression he wore was one of equal parts aggressive curiosity, and intense hunger. These were all secondary realizations for Rey, however, as the first thing she noticed as she returned his gaze were his eyes; golden yellow with a slight tinge of green, they stared into her soul hypnotically, their vertical, snakelike pupils seemed to expand and dilate as they gazed at her. They were the same pair of eyes that she had just been fleeing from, but how could they now be looking at her out of the face of a human? Rey could feel her breath hitch and heartbeat pound in her head; her flight instincts were taking over, but she was transfixed by the mesmerizing quality of his gaze.

The man bent his head slightly, still fixing Rey with his compelling stare, a smile that was terrifyingly similar to a predator animal bearing it's teeth at its intended victim, growing slowly across his face. Rey was still frozen in place, unable to move or cry out, her feeling of dread almost choking her as he revealed perfect rows of glistening white teeth and (here Rey's inner voice was shrieking in her ears to run, run as far and as fast as she could), two long, wicked-looking razor sharp fangs. He spoke again, and now that Rey was looking at him as he did it, she saw his forked tongue slithering out slightly as he spoke; in her horrified fascination, she almost didn't catch his next words, though they chilled her to the bone when their meaning hit her "By all the gods, you smell delicious," She could almost feel his hot breath caress her cheek "I should just devour you right here and now." He took a sudden step toward her, teeth bared, and something deep inside Rey came roaring to life; with all the strength she could musters, she broke free from his hypnotic gaze and leapt backwards, throwing her hands out in front of her in a shielding motion. An opalescent light flashed out between them and Rey felt herself flying backward, propelled by an unknown force, before everything went black.


	3. Chapter 3

As if through the haze of a lucid dream, Rey felt herself being borne along; someone was carrying her in their arms like one would an infant, and she could feel her arms and legs swaying with the pace of the person bearing her along. She mustered all the strength she could and raised her head, a feeling of frightening despair washing over her as she saw that her captor was the same man she had just met in the woods. She tried all she could to scream and kick to get away, but all she could manage was some feeble struggling and a weak moan. The man didn't seem to notice, as he appeared to be muttering to himself; she could barely make out the words, but what she did hear made no sense to her "A fucking satyrkind. Out here of all places. By the gods, what the fuck am I going to do with her?" He seemed to be in a state of annoyed disbelief, and at a loss of what to make of the young girl in his arms. Rey craned her neck to look up at him as subtly as possible; he looked less frightening from that angle, but his yellow eyes were still just as unnerving. Rey also noticed a wound on his forehead that had not been there before she had blacked out "How did he get that? Did I do that to him?" she wondered to herself. She wracked her brain trying to remember what had happened to make her lose consciousness, but she had already massively depleted her strength, and the additional strain proved to be too much; she slipped back into the darkness.

It was the crackling sounds of a fire that woke Rey out of her slumber sometime later; looking around, she discovered that she was laying on a low bench carved out of a fallen log. Across from where she lay was the fire that had drawn her out of her stupor; the fire was set in a semicircular above-ground pit carved into the side of a giant slab of rock, and sitting above the fire, supported by the edges of the fire pit, was a huge cauldron that looked like it could hold three of her quite comfortably.

The cauldron reminded Rey of the words the man spoke to her just before she had been knocked unconscious "I should just devour you right here and now" Fear gripped her "Is he actually planning on EATING me?" She asked herself incredulously. Hearing someone approaching from behind her, Rey dropped her head and closed her eyes, pretending to still be asleep. "I see you aren't dead" The man's voice spoke as she felt his robes brush against the hand that hung off the end of the bench. Rey opened her eyes and saw that his back was turned to her as he tended the fire; he had removed his outer robes, but it hadn't diminished his size in the least, even crouched over the fire, he was imposing. Rey slowly pulled herself into a seated position, and, seeing that he seemed to be preoccupied with his work on the fire, she scrambled to her feet, intending to make her escape while he was otherwise occupied. "I'm sorry, but you're not going anywhere." He called out over his shoulder. Rey had only made it a handful of steps before her knees buckled underneath her, and she fell to the ground, exhausted.

The man clicked his tongue in a scolding manner "I told you you weren't going anywhere," He repeated himself "Your little demonstration has depleted your energy completely, you wouldn't be able to make it to that tree over there" He waved his hand at a fir barely ten paces away "Do you even know where you are? I doubt you've set foot in these woods before today." He had made his way over to her and, tucking his hands under Rey's arms, hauled her up and set her back on the log bench. "Just stay there, and don't waste energy you don't have." He disappeared into what Rey now saw was a cave tucked into the side of a hill, coming back moments later with a robe tucked under one arm, and a small parcel in the other hand, both of which he laid on the rock next to the cauldron. He motioned toward the cauldron as if to say "Go ahead." but Rey merely sat there staring at him, not comprehending what he wanted her to do. He waved again, "Well, get in" he said in exasperation. She remained staring at him, finally getting up the courage to ask what exactly he wanted her to do "Are you going to eat me?" she asked with fearful disgust. Her disgust was mirrored on his face "Eat you? You think I'm going to make you into stew? Ugh, no. You're filthy, there's no way I'm letting you stay here looking and smelling like that." She hesitated, unconvinced "But I don't want to stay here, you kidnapped me!" He rolled his eyes in exasperation "You blasted me with your amateur attempt at magic, and knocked yourself out cold in the process. If I hadn't brought you back here, you would have been wolf food by now."

"I didn't do anything!" she cried "If you hadn't come at me like you wanted to make me your meal then none of this would have happened!" He waved his hand as if to dismiss her outrage "I wasn't going to actually eat you, though you do smell like you'd taste delicious; you're an outsider here, I wanted to scare you so you'd leave. I'd probably have just sapped some of your spirit energy, you are a strange creature after all, and dropped you off where you entered the wood."

Rey sat there, agape, not knowing where to start on what he'd just said to her; the part where he'd mentioned devouring her twice now, made her feel uncomfortable and strangely hot, so she decided to ignore it, focusing instead on what he had said about her strangeness. "Back in the woods, that flash of light, that's never happened before, what was it?" He studied her curiously "It makes sense that you don't know, considering how sloppy and impulsive your technique was. Though I am surprised that at your age, this kind of thing never happened to you before." Rey shrugged "The fauns who raised me never spoke of magic, they never seemed to consider that I might be different from them aside from my unusually small horns, and feet, and tail," The man smirked slightly "Those are enough reasons to consider you different. Though it makes sense that you were raised by fauns; they reject all things that are foreign or strange to them; I'm surprised they kept you." Rey ignored his last statement "When you were carrying me back, I heard you say something about a satyrkind? What is that?"

He stood their studying her for a moment before he spoke, a glint in his eye that Rey wasn't sure she liked, but couldn't put her finger on why it bothered her. After a while, he seemed to shake himself out of his reverie; clapping his hands together he declared "Well! That's enough discussion. You should get cleaned up, I brought you some soap and something to wear until we can get your things cleaned." As much as she hated to admit it, a hot bath sounded glorious to her aching muscles, and she decided that if she was going to die, she might as well get clean and comfortable first.

Rey struggled to her feet, every muscle in her body screaming in protest, and hobbled over to the stone slab that the cauldron was mounted on. As she shrugged off her leather jerkin and started unlacing the back of her breeches, she glanced back at the man, and was immediately alarmed that he hadn't made any effort to look away or go inside. "Um, excuse me?" She called out "Do you mind?" He cocked his head to the side questioningly "Do I mind what?" She stared at him, slightly appalled "Going inside or at least turning around, perhaps? I don't want you looking at me like this." The fauns Rey had been raised with gave no care for modesty, this much was true, but for some reason, Rey balked at the idea of this man seeing her in such a vulnerable state.

"By all means," he answered holding his hands out, palms upward, in a placating gesture "I don't wish to make you uncomfortable; and if you can truly get yourself into the bath on your own, in your state, without cracking your head open, I will happily oblige you." Rey wanted to shoot back with some snide remark, but, much to her own disgust, she saw his point; she had reached her physical limit, and blown past it by a furlong. Crawling up onto the stone slab, and from there, getting herself into the cauldron would be quite a feat in her condition, and should anything go wrong, could end in disaster.

The man spoke again, interrupting her thoughts, this time his tone was softened slightly "If it makes you feel any better, I'll help you onto the slab, and look away while you get undressed, and then help you into the bath; but that's all the coddling you'll get from me." His last words were uttered like a warning, as if to make up for the seeming weakness of the offered compromise.

Rey accepted the offer with a curt nod, and hobbled over to where he stood beside the huge slab of rock. Expecting her host to simply take her hand and help her step up onto the platform, Rey was taken by surprise and let out a sharp squeak when he tucked his hands under her arms and lifted her like a child as if she weighed nothing, and set her abruptly on the step above him. He then joined her and fixed her with a stern stare as if to let her know that he wouldn't tolerate any nonsense from her. Rey stood there facing him, awkwardly twisting one leg around the other, knowing that she must undress, but her shyness refusing to allow her.

"So, u-um, would you please tell me your name?" She asked hesitantly, unable to meet his gaze "I don't know that I can undress and bathe in front of a man when I don't even know his name." She heard him sigh wearily "Will you be more cooperative if I do?" He asked, a mild undertone of irritation in his voice. Rey nodded willingly; by this time, she'd had a chance to assess her situation, and although she didn't relish spending time with this man (at best, he was rude and aggressive; at worst, he was downright frightening as she had already experienced, not to mention that strange hunger lurking behind his eyes when he looked at her for any prolonged amount of time), but it was clear that he knew or at least had an idea of what she was. If she had any chance of truly knowing herself and whatever mysterious abilities she had, he was her best bet, and she wasn't about to let that chance get away. "Kylo Ren" he finally uttered "You can call me Kylo or Ren, whichever you prefer, now would you please get in the bath?"

Rey managed a half smile "I'm Rey" she replied "Now, you said you would turn around while I got undressed, please do that." Kylo prolonged his pointed stare for another long moment before obliging her, and turned his back. Rey quickly unlaced her breeches and shivered out of them before pulling her shift over her head, the chilly night air raising goose bumps as it whispered over her skin. Crossing her arms over her breasts, she turned her back to him "Okay, I'm ready" she called out, realizing that it may have been pointless and rather silly to make him turn around when he had to look at her anyway when helping her into the water.

She heard the swish of his robe as he turned toward her; peeking over her shoulder, she saw that he had removed his gloves and sleeves, leaving his hands and arms bare. She couldn't help but admire his muscular arms, and took special notice of how his muscles rippled under his skin. Realizing where her observations were taking her, Rey blushed deeply and averted her eyes, hugging herself tighter and wishing she could pitch herself into an ice cold pond to suppress whatever it was she was feeling. While all these thoughts were racing through her head, Rey had become distracted and almost leapt out of her skin when she felt a hand laid between shoulders; her breath caught in her chest at the feeling of skin on skin contact, she'd never had a man touch her like that before. Kylo moved his hand from the center of her back and slipped it under her arm, while he reached down with the other arm, and tucked it behind her knees, lifting her into a cradling position and depositing her into the huge bath.

The feeling of the almost-scalding water enveloping her body was so soothing and painfully glorious, that Rey let out a sob of joy, and let herself sink beneath the surface. Upon coming back up for air, Kylo handed her a bar of soap and a cloth to wash herself with. Feeling better than she had in what felt like years, Rey happily went to work scrubbing her skin from her feet up, while Kylo watched her with a modicum of interest, that same hungry look still present, albeit almost entirely suppressed, while trailing the tips of his fingers through the water. At that point Rey didn't care if he openly leered at her; all was forgiven in that moment as the water washed over her aching body.


	4. Chapter 4

Rey had scrubbed every inch of the lower two thirds of her body, her tail having taken the longest, as she took equal pride in keeping it shiny and luxurious as she did with the hair on her head, and had moved on to her arms, sponging the sudsy water over her shoulders and back. When she finally reached up to get to work on her hair, she found that her arms were so sore, that she couldn't even raise them high enough to reach the base of her neck. After several tries, she turned to Kylo, who was now resting his chin on one hand while he stared into the water, lost in thought. "He almost looks like he could be not completely awful when he stares off like that" Rey thought to herself "He might even be rather handsome if I was feeling really generous." "Hey," she called out "Could you help me?" He started slightly and raised his eyes to look at her questioningly; she held up her hands "This is as far as I can lift them, and I can't reach my hair" she said laughingly. Without a word, he reached out and guided her to a position facing away from him, and began taking her buns down "Why do you wear your hair this way?" He asked, unwinding one after the other; he was surprisingly gentle , taking care to not yank at her hair, and being as gentle as he could "If I'm not mistaken, this kind of hairstyle is worn by faun children, and you're...not quite a child?" He said it like someone who was fairly confident in their assessment, but wanted to be sure.

Rey nodded "Yes, you're right. I should have been confirmed as an adult three springs ago, but my horns stopped growing when I reached my fourteenth year, and the elders refused to acknowledge my adulthood until they grew again, so I've been stuck in the status of a child indefinitely." Kylo had finished taking her buns down "Let me take a look at your horns," He grasped her chin gently and turned her face toward him; brushing her hair out of the way, he drew closer to her, a concentrated frown creasing his brow as he studied the horns protruding from her forehead. "Well, they look perfectly healthy" he gripped one of them, rubbing his thumb over the length of it, and in the process making Rey almost cry out: she'd never felt anything like THAT from someone touching her horns before; it sent a chill down her spine and almost made her skin break out in goose flesh. Kylo, oblivious so the feelings he'd invoked in her continued "They're small, it's true, but they look mature, and they're quite sturdy. Anyway, your elders are fools to judge your maturity based on faun growth milestones, when you are clearly of a different ilk." He turned her head back away from him, and poured water over her hair before taking the soap in his hands and working it into a lather.

Rey leaned back against the cauldron and closed her eyes trying to compose herself after the delicious shock she'd just received; she was tempted to make a sassy remark about how he had said he wasn't going to give her any special treatment, but she was afraid he would stop. "Seeing as how you seem very sure that I'm not the smallest bit faun, can you tell me what I am? You mentioned the word satyrkind." He was silent for a moment "What did the ones who raised you tell you that you are?" Rey shrugged "They didn't. I was left outside my mother's hut as a newborn; no one ever tried to call me anything, they all knew I was different, but they just raised me as one of their own."

"Hmm" He seemed to be searching for a way to best explain "Do you know what a satyr is?" "It sounds familiar," she replied "Aren't they a bit like fauns?" Kylo set down the soap he'd been lathering and started working it into Rey's scalp "Satyrs and fauns are cousins of a sort; they both have goat-like legs and horns. The one physical difference is that satyrs have cloven hooves, while faun hooves are solid; once you get past physical appearance, all similarities end. You are already familiar with fauns: they are calm folk and reject the company of almost all other sentient creatures, save the fauna they share their territories with." He moved from her scalp, grabbing the cloth and thoroughly scrubbing her ears, making sure to get behind them, and all the way up to their delicate tips. "Satyrs on the other hand are wildly social creatures; they love wine and song, and will fuck literally anything that is possibly fuckable." Seeing the disgust on Rey's face, he allowed himself the smallest of smirks. "They sound like magical creatures," Rey griped "I clearly don't fit into the category of faun or satyr, so how does what you said I am, a satyrkind, fit into all of this?" Kylo began rinsing the suds from her hair and ears "The word satyrkind means the child of a satyr. Now, I know you're going to ask how you could be the child of a satyr, when you look nothing like one, apart from your horns. Satyrs live very long lives and, as I'm sure you can imagine based on their social natures, do not reproduce very often; however, when they do, they most often do so with their own kind. A satyr mating with another satyr produces a satyr, therefore there is no need for a special name. A satyrkind on the other hand, is what happens when a satyr reproduces with a different race." He had finished rinsing her hair by that time, and wrung all the water he could from it; then, tying it up at the top of her head, he resumed his former position leaning against the side of the cauldron, chin resting on one hand.

" Ages ago, Satyrs used to breed with other races much more often, spreading their blood far and wide. One odd thing about them, is if two creatures possessing satyr blood, regardless of how they dominantly present, will always produce another satyr. Satyrkinder are born when a satyr reproduces with a creature who has no trace of satyr blood; and the the abilities that child is born with, as well as what they look like, is heavily dependent on the race of the other parent." Rey nodded "I think I get what you're saying: one of my parents was a satyr, as evidenced by my horns and the presence of a tail. On the other hand, my other parent is a mystery. Also, would you explain my tail? It's not like a satyr's at all; it looks like a horse's tail" She picked up the wash cloth and leaned over, motioning him closer; he frowned and drew back, not understanding her intention. She pointed at the would on his forehead that had long hardened over with dried blood, again beckoning him closer; this time he cooperated, although hesitantly, and she proceeded to sponge the blood away.

"The other half of your parentage may be a mystery for now, but I have a few vague ideas of its nature." he let his eyes fall closed as Rey washed his face "Exploring the nature of your abilities however, could provide much more reliable clues as to what it might be. As far as your strange tail, I can't think of what kind of creature might possess one like it, but satyrs recessively carry the traits of many different races; some so ancient they may be entirely unknown to us. It's possible that trait comes from a race that doesn't even exist anymore." "I see," she answered, finishing her task and wringing out the washcloth "Well, Kylo Ren, I'd very much appreciate it if you would let me stay and teach me how to discover whatever abilities I might have. What do you say?" She asked brightly. He pondered her proposition for a few moments, running a thumb over his bottom lip. "I suppose I could teach you how to harness your magic. Though..." He fixed her with that strange stare of his again "What would be in this for me?" Rey's head popped up from where she's been resting it against the side of the cauldron "What do you mean?" She asked cautiously, put on her guard again by the weight that seemed to cling to his words "What I mean is," he played his fingertips across the surface of the water "You would be staying here with me; you'd need food, shelter, clothing eventually. Your lessons would take up a majority of my time, so how do you plan on making compensation?"

Rey drew away from him slightly; she saw that she had allowed herself to think of him in a friendly light, when the truth was that she didn't know this man in the least, and had no idea what his intentions for her might consist of. She thought about withdrawing her proposal entirely, but what would she do then? She couldn't go home with nothing; and trying to figure out her abilities all alone? Magic could be incredibly dangerous, and she knew nothing about it; she might as well just drown herself in the bath right then and there. She sighed "What could I possibly have to offer you?" He thought for a moment, stroking his chin "Well, you do have a very unique smell about you; I'd be quite curious to find out what your power feels like. I will agree to all your requests if you allow me to feed off your spirit energy every now and then. Not to worry" He rushed to explain seeing the look of panic come over her features "Sapping energy like this is not harmful in small doses; it will only make you feel slightly tired for a short period of time, there are no lasting consequences. And it will give me a stronger feel for the source and nature of your power."

Rey was torn; on one hand, she wanted to reject him outright. "Feeding" off her spirit energy sounded horrible, and she didn't necessarily trust his definition of "small doses", nor his ability to maintain self control. On the other hand, she desperately wanted to explore her potential and find out as much about where she came from as she could. There was also a tiny voice deep down inside her, that she would never openly acknowledge, that was curious about what it would be like for this Kylo Ren to feed on her. She'd never had any kind of sexual experience in her life, aside from the exploring of her own body that she'd done in the rare occasion that she'd had some privacy; and even though Kylo said nothing about it being sexual in nature, the way it had felt when he touched her horn, and everything she felt when she looked at him, along with the aggressive way he sometimes spoke to her, told her that this was an experience she'd regret running away from.

"Well?" Kylo's voice broke through her thoughts "Do you think that's something you can agree to?" "Give me a minute, I'm still deciding" she replied "I'm done in here now, though. Help me out?" Kylo reached out his hand toward where the robe he'd brought out for her lay on the log bench. Much to Rey's surprise, the robe levitated and flew into his hand, where he shook it out and held it up for her to step into. Rey followed his lead, and, hugging herself once more in another attempt at modesty and to hide as much from his eyes as she could, she stood up and turned her back to him, reaching out behind her with one arm and then the other, slipping into the giant black robe. Once she had the robe wrapped around her upper half, Kylo lifted her out of the bath his hands under her arms just like he had before. He wrapped her up tightly, and picked her up, carrying her into his cave and depositing her on a made up bed on the low couch near the hearth. As he was covering her with blankets and tucking them around her, she looked up at him "I'd like to know about what exactly you are, and the nature of your own abilities; would you tell me about them?" He pulled the blanket up to her chin "Yes, in time, I'll tell you all about what I am and show you all I can do. But that's a conversation for another time. Get your rest now."

He stepped back and turned around, proceeding to strip off his shirt, and was moving to take off his pants when Rey squeaked out an alarmed "What are you doing?!" He looked over his shoulder at her "You're not the only one who needed to bathe" Her eyes grew wide as he stripped of the remainder of his clothing and, still keeping his back to her, strode out of the cave. A few minutes later she heard him climbing into the cauldron, and she buried her head in her pillows in blushing shame at herself for wondering what he looked like from the front.

Rey tried her best to wait until Kylo was done bathing to let him know that she would accept his offer, but the warmth of the bed, and soft sounds of the fire lulled her into a deep sleep. "Oh well," she thought to herself as she drifted off "I'll just tell him in the morning."


	5. Chapter 5

Something woke Rey out of her deep slumber; she lay there for a moment trying to get her bearings, her surroundings completely foreign to her "Oh that's right," she relaxed back into her bed "I'm not home anymore, I'm in the cave of a strange man who possesses powers that are completely unknown to me, who may also want to devour my soul" She groaned at the thought of how it sounded when stated that way, and was grateful that she hadn't accepted Kylo's proposal before, because now she was having serious doubts. "What does he even mean when he says he wants to feed off my energy, and how does that work? Does he have to bite me? Can he just do it by touching my skin?" She pounded her head back into her pillows several times, wracking her brain for anything that would provide a definitive answer. On one hand, she didn't trust Kylo, and had a strong feeling that he wanted more from her than he was saying; on the other, she had already learned so much about where she came from, that she couldn't imagine just cutting and running before she could find out more.

As Rey lay on the couch weighing her options, she heard rustling on the other side of the cave, coming from the direction of Kylo's bed. The sound stopped for a moment, then started up again a few seconds later. Unable to ignore her curiosity, Rey slipped out from under her covers, and crawled silently on her hands and knees over to the edge of the large bed that sat up against the opposite cave wall. Once there, she remained crouched until she could be sure he hadn't woken up; she heard his heavy breathing, ensuring that he was still fast asleep, and then she heard the rustling sounds again. Confident that she could take a look without disturbing him, Rey raised herself into her knees, so that just her forehead and eyes could be seen above the edge of the bed. Taking in the view, Rey was immediately distracted by the sight in front of her, and almost had her original reason for investigating completely erased from her brain.

Kylo lay on his back, his luxurious black hair tumbling over his face and across his pillow; Rey noticed his choice in sleepwear immediately: he wore nothing except for some soft looking black pants that also appeared to be very thin, as they draped over his manhood in a very defining manner. One of his hands was splayed out on his chest, while the other was stretched across the bed in the direction of where Rey was now crouched. Rousing herself out of her lustful thoughts, she couldn't determine what could be causing the rustling sound from before, until she saw him move. Kylo's chest rose and fell dramatically by default, simply a result of his naturally very deep breathing; but now as Rey watched, his chest began heaving, almost as if he were fighting for air.

The rustling sound was reproduced when Kylo's hands began fisting into the bedding underneath him; as his behavior became progressively more distressed, an alarmed Rey fought with the impulse to wake him. She knew he could very well attack her if she were to try to grab and shake him awake, but he looked like he was experiencing such a horrible nightmare that she couldn't stand by and do nothing. She decided to reach out across the bed and grab his hand; that way, she could remain out of reach if he did become violent. Rey knelt down on the floor and slipped her hand into Kylo's, soothingly rubbing her thumb across his knuckles "Kylo. Kylo, wake up." She whispered, continuing to stroke the back of his hand "Kylo. Hey, Ren. You're ok, wake up." At her last words, his eyes popped open, his hand clamped down on hers, and yanked her halfway across the bed toward him, his glowing yellow eyes staring out wildly. As frightening as he was, one look into his eyes told Rey that he was still fast asleep and experiencing the dream that was causing him distress. Instead of kicking or screaming and trying to break his hold on her like her instincts were crying out for her to do, she stayed calm and reached out to brush the hair out of his face; she spoke to him soothingly, and continued to run her fingers through his hair.

After a while it seemed to work, Kylo's eyes fluttered closed, and he leaned back on his pillows, relaxing his grip on Rey, so she could gently disentangle herself and roll off the bed and onto the floor. Making her way back to her own bed, Rey made up her mind for good: she was staying. That look he had given her when he sat up in the middle of his dream had been so full of fear and heartbreak, that she couldn't bring herself to leave when he suffered night terrors like this, and she didn't know their source. Crawling back under her own covers, Rey decided that, while it was Kylo's intention to be her instructor, she would do her best to be his healer.

The next morning Rey was jostled awake when Kylo, fully awake and completely dressed, picked her up off her bed, blankets and all, and tossed her onto his own bed; he then seized the blankets she was wrapped in and yanked hard, sending her rolling out of them, clutching frantically to the robe she slept in to maintain some fragment of her dignity. As she sat there dazed and disoriented, he dropped a pile of clothing on top of her "Time to get up!" his deep voice boomed "Today we start exploring those abilities of yours." With that, he marched off out the door, she assumed, to get breakfast going; she gathered he had other things to do because he certainly didn't care to make her comfortable by giving her privacy she thought to herself grumpily. Leaning back on her elbows for a second to wait for her grogginess to dissipate, Rey found herself running her fingers over Kylo's bedding; he apparently didn't care to make his bed in the morning, so the covers were still in disarray from his nighttime tossing about, but it gave Rey the opportunity to find out what sort of bedding he preferred. She was amazed by how soft and silky his sheets and blankets were; she lay back and stretched her arms out, making snow angel motions against the covers. She imagined what it would be like to sleep among those blankets (like swimming through an inky sea of softness), how it would feel to be snuggled up against his huge warm body, or have him curled protectively around her. Her mind wandered, wondering what would it be like to be thrown down on those blankets, to have a pair of strong hands flip her over onto her stomach, and push her face down into the pillows; Kylo behind her, lifting her hips up and-. Rey sat bolt upright, her face crimson and hot as she buried it in her hands, letting out a small scream of frustration "NO! What am I thinking? I have to get dressed."

Sorting through the clothes he had rudely dropped on her head, and trying her best to suppress her sinful impulses, Rey found that they were all her clothes that she had worn the day before when he found her in the forest; she was amazed, these clothes were spotlessly clean and completely dry. "Yesterday they were caked in mud and soaked through, did he use his magic to get them so clean?" she wondered aloud. Not bothering to wait until he came back to ask, Rey shimmied into her clothes, taking advantage of the privacy while she had it.

Once she was dressed, Rey skipped out of the cave and surveyed her surroundings; she knew it must be morning, but there was such little sunlight filtering down though the dense trees, that it appeared to be early evening. Kylo sat by the fire, scraping the remains of his breakfast out of a bowl that sat on his knee; as he turned, he gave her a quizzical look, wrinkling his nose and sniffing slightly "What have you been up to since I brought you your clothes?" He asked it as if there was something different about her that he couldn't place. Rey shrugged "I'm not sure; Why do you ask?" She tried to act innocent enough, still flushed from her little fit just moments before. "You just smell...strange. Stronger, I suppose. I can smell you from a greater distance than usual. Oh well," He waved his hand as if to dismiss the subject "There's food for you if you're hungry, but hurry, we have a lot to do today."


	6. Chapter 6

Kylo's first order of business was to see if they could evoke the reaction that she had the day before when she had met him and produced a blast of light that had effected both of them. "Now," he started, as they stood in a clearing a small distance from the cave "What were you feeling when you created your blast? We need to know as much as we can so we can recreate that feeling and you can do it again." Rey had questions "When that happened it knocked me out for several hours, and I'm still kind of sore. I'd rather not do that again so soon. And what is so important about recreating my feelings from before" "Magical powers are closely tied in with our emotions; if we can put you back in the state that evoked your power the first time, it will be much easier to access that power again. Don't worry too much about it hurting you like before; that was your power being awakened and breaking free in a much more violent manner than if it were to emerge under less traumatic circumstances. This time, it already has a path to follow, so it will be significantly less painful"

Rey still felt doubtful, but she was aware that he was much more knowledgeable about such things so she decided to comply "Fear. I had just run into you as the snake," she shuddered at the recollection "And then you bared your teeth at me and acted like you were going to ravish me on the spot, so I'd say fear was the strongest emotion I felt at that moment." "alright, then. We'll start there." Rey turned to ask what he meant by that, only to see him already half done stripping his clothes off; she stared, wondering what he could possibly hope to accomplish by being half naked. He had turned away from her at that point, when he suddenly dropped to the ground on all fours; Rey was about to rush over to see what was wrong, when she saw his muscles beginning to spasm, causing him to lay flat on the ground, contorting into what looked like incredibly painful positions. Before Rey realized what was happening, the enormous black snake from the night before lay coiled in front of her, it's glowing yellow eyes fixed on her like she was its prey. She gasped aloud, backing slowly away from the creature. Even though she knew it was Kylo slithering toward her, it was all she could do to keep from screaming as that same feeling of dread filled her mind. She snake's tongue flicked in and out, tasting her scent on the wind, and advancing on her at a slow but determined speed.

Rey continued backing away as the snake approached her, trying as hard as she could to produce the same blast of energy that she had before, but it was all in vain; as she retreated, she failed to see the fallen branch that lay behind her feet, and paid for it, falling flat on her back. As she propped herself up on her elbows, she saw that the snake had continued its advance, slithering over the branch; it had now reached her foot, and was beginning to slither up over it, climbing her body toward her face, it's hypnotic gaze riveting her in place. As it drew closer, Rey finally resigned herself to her fate, and closed her eyes, waiting for it to strike. Instead of feeling fangs on her neck, Rey suddenly felt a great weight settle on her lower body; she opened one eye and almost fainted dead away. Kylo, back in his human form was laying on her, completely naked, supporting himself with his hands on either side of her head and staring at her disappointedly. "Well that didn't work, are you sure fear was what you were feeling most strongly when you tried to blast my head off?" It was taking all of Rey's willpower not to look down as she refused to make eye contact with the naked man laying on top of her. "U-um, yes. That's the only emotion I can remember from that moment." He thought for a moment "Maybe we should try a less drastic approach," He hauled himself off of her and strode over to his pile of clothes that lay nearby. Rey lay where she had fallen for a few minutes trying to calm her racing heart while Kylo got dressed. He returned to her and held out his hand "Come on, I have another idea."

Kylo led Rey to a different clearing; this time, there were several tree stumps on one side of the clearing. On three of the stumps, there was a small pile of colored rocks on piles of the same color; on a fourth stump there sat a small empty bucket. "We're going to start out with something simple this time," he said waving at the setup "A large portion of beings who can create energy blasts like you did, also possess telekinetic abilities. Even though you haven't ever exhibited anything close to telekinesis, we're going to see if we can coax that ability out of you. What I want you to do is hold out your dominant hand and focus your magic into that hand; once you have funneled enough magic into that limb, use it to pick up a red pebble and drop it in the bucket. Are you ready?" She wasn't but she was desperately afraid of failing again, so she nodded anyway. Kylo stood behind her and directed her in the way to raise her hand to command the movement of the pebble; he then waited for her to proceed at her own pace. Rey did exactly as he had shown her, and lifted her hand to order the pebble to move as she wished. Feeling as if she were funneling her energy as best as she could, she commanded the pebble to move. Nothing, She tried again and again, being careful to clear all other things from her mind as Kylo told her, but to no avail. She was getting increasingly frustrated as her continued attempts failed to yield results; at that point, Kylo reached out, putting his hand under her outstretched arm and whispering something in her ear. She had no idea what he said, it was drowned out by the sound of blood rushing in her head and her heart pounding in her chest; she closed her eyes for half a second, and when she opened them, she poured all of her focus onto her hand to reach for the red pebble on the top of its pile, and was thunderstruck when the entire pile levitated and floated over to the bucket. It hung there in the air for a moment, and then rained down, into and all around the bucket when she released it.

They were both silent for several minutes "Rey," Kylo finally spoke, breaking the silence "What did you feel just then?" She was still incredulous "I don't know! It just happened; I reached out in my mind and visualized it happening and it just did! I only meant to move one pebble though, not the whole thing." Kylo grasped Rey by her shoulders and turned her to face him "Rey, I need to know exactly what happened before you moved those rocks. What were you feeling? What were you thinking about? This is all very important." She thought for a moment "Well, I was trying to imagine the pebbles moving like you said to, and just as I was lifting my hand to move it, you touched my arm and said something, but I didn't hear it. And then they moved." He looked down at her, seeming to be turning something over and over in his head "Alright, let's try it again." They turned back toward the piles of rocks, and Rey once again raised her hand, trying to focus all the magic she had into her hand; just as she was about to try to lift another pebble, Rey felt a large hand laid firmly on her hip. Trying to ignore her blood rising again, she looked up at him questioningly "Just continue trying to move the rock" he instructed. She nodded nervously and turned back to her task she was just getting a feel for how the pebbles felt when she reached out toward them, when he gave her hip a tight squeeze. At that moment, every pebble in each pile flew through the air and went crashing into the bucket, sending it flying.

"Kylo, what does this mean?" Rey asked finally. He ran his fingers through his hair "It means that your power is derived from your level of sexual arousal; I haven't witnessed that before, usually, power is attached to emotions like anger, fear, or joy. Yours is more animal instinct than emotion." She hesitated, feeling shy and slightly fearful about what she was about to ask "Does that mean I must always feel that way in order to use my powers?" He looked down at her, seeing her embarrassment, and seeming to take a slight amount of pity on her; patting her on the head he nodded "At first, yes. You've only just started to discover what you are capable of, so we'll need to build on that; however, as you learn to harness those capabilities, you'll learn to access them at will. In other words, you will eventually learn to be their master instead of your abilities mastering you."

"Well what do we do now?" She asked "We've been at it awhile, it's getting late." He nodded in agreement but made no move to head back to the cave; instead he turned to face her, and she saw that same hunger had sprung back into his golden yellow eyes "I think it's time for you to hold up your part of our bargain." Rey shrank away slightly "Already?" she asked, her voice small. "I think so," he replied "I'd like to get a taste of what I'm getting myself into." "How exactly does that work?" she asked tremulously "Are you going to bite me?" He smiled, his lips drawing away from his dangerous-looking teeth "No, it doesn't have to, not with the small taste I'm going to take now." Still unsure, Rey nodded "Okay then, go ahead." He reached out and placed his hands on either side of her face and neck; she felt nothing at first until a warm feeling spread from where his fingers were touching her throughout her whole body. It was like submerging herself in the bath, but on the inside. She was just starting to relax when he withdrew his hands. She looked up and smiled "That wasn't so bad" she said brightly "Oh Rey," he responded, giving her a very pointed stare that shot straight to her soul "That was barely a taste; I'm still quite hungry." With that, he turned and headed up the path toward the cave. Rey stood there a few minutes longer, thinking about what had just happened; she felt like she was standing at the edge of a vast abyss, and was in danger of plunging headlong into its depths at any second. Pushing the feeling to the back of her mind, she took off at a jog to catch up.


	7. Chapter 7

They went to sleep early that night, both of them exhausted from the day's events. Rey fell into a deep sleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, passing much of the night in a dreamless slumber. Once again, something woke her before she was ready; as she opened her bleary eyes, she barely made out Kylo's form; he was sitting faced toward her, one leg drawn up to his chest, on a trunk that sat at the foot of his bed. She didn't see the glow of his uncanny eyes, so she assumed he had fallen asleep there, which was strange, as she was sure that she had seen him crawl into his bed not long after she had gotten into hers. As this thought was crossing her mind, he looked up, fully awake and fixed her with his gaze. "Rey," she heard him utter her name in a low voice, a strange blend of a growl and a whisper. "Y-yes?" She answered "Come here." was the answer she received. Obeying his order, she pulled back her blankets and crossed the room, shivering as a night breeze floated in. She stopped upon reaching him, standing just beyond his knees. Placing his hands on her hips, he pulled her in to stand between his legs and rested his forehead against her stomach, holding her there for several minutes without a word.

When Kylo finally did move again, it was to push Rey away from his legs so he could pull them together; as which point, he pulled her in again; spreading her legs so she could straddle his lap, he held her tightly before looking into her eyes "I'm going to taste you again, but a real taste this time." With that, he slipped his hands beneath her robe and gripped her sides tightly, burying his face in the crook of her neck. This time, the heat came rushing in hotter and faster; Rey wrapped her arms around Kylo's neck, feeling as if she might drift away if she loosened her grip. She felt his lips parting against her neck; at first she felt a light kisses against her skin, but as the heat grew, he held her tighter, crushing her to him in an almost frenzied way. His kisses turned to gritted teeth pressed into her collar bone. He finally broke free; rising to his feet, he deposited Rey back in her bed and returned to his own. Not knowing what to make of the encounter, Rey found herself becoming quickly fatigued, and soon fell asleep again.

The next morning, neither of them mentioned the events from the night before, both seeming to understand that it was better left alone for the time being. As they sat by the fire eating their morning meal, Rey turned to Kylo "Can you turn into other things, other animals, like you turn into a snake?" She asked. He nodded "I can turn into any beast that I've seen before. I'm unable to transform into anything that I've never laid eyes on; there has to be a template in place before I can assume its appearance." "So why choose a gigantic snake all the time? Why not something else?" He let out a slight chuckle "The snake frightens you, doesn't it?" When she nodded he explained "The snake was my first transformation; it's also my most familiar one. Yes, I can turn into a wolf or an eagle, but the feeling of doing so is like when you put on clothing that is a size too large or small: you might be able to do it fine, but it never feels quite right." She nodded before standing up to wash her dishes "And the fangs? Are they always there?" He had leaned forward, propping his elbows on his knees "I guess not. They've just always been there since I was a kid and learned to shift for the first time; they made me feel strong and powerful when I really needed to, so I've held on to them." Moving to join her in washing his dishes he laid out his plan for the day "I think today we'll work on using your abilities in a more dynamic setting; how do you feel about hitting a moving target?" Rey flashed him a cheeky grin "I'll hit anything you want to throw at me."

They made their way to the training area, and Kylo produced a bag of flint knives that he'd brought with him, spreading them out on a stump; he then walked across the clearing and brought out a stack of discs that appeared to be slices of a tree trunk, its rings creating a natural bull's-eye shape. He returned to stand slightly behind her, pointing out each element "The way this is going to go is I will send the discs flying around you, and I want you to sink one of the knives into the center of each one." Rey gave him a skeptical look "The center? Why not just settle for just hitting them somewhere?" He responded by reaching around and roughly grabbing one of her ass cheeks, squeezing hard while his other hand wrapped lightly around her neck; he leaned in and kissed her neck, sucking on the skin until it was puckered and red, and then withdrew, leaving her flushed and out of breath. "We're not settling for anything, because I know you are perfectly capable of hitting those targets right in the middle," he smiled arrogantly at her and walked back across the clearing, undoing the fasteners of his shirtwaist; shrugging off the garment and tossing it off to one side, leaving his torso bare with just his bandaged sleeves remaining "And I'm giving you all the fuel you need, remember, embrace the source of your power, it's not something to feel shame for; you can do this."

Taking a deep breath, Rey squared her shoulders; Kylo had done exactly as he said, and she could feel the warmth of her power flooding across her skin as she admired the way his abs flexed as he moved, and remembered his touch from only moments before. She reached her hand out toward the knives, projecting her power and letting it flow around them, sensing their size and shape. On his end, Kylo began levitating the targets one after the other, moving them in slow circles at first, and then beginning to speed them up "Whenever you're ready, Rey" he called out. The sound of her name on his tongue sent a shiver down Rey's spine; she took his advice and reveled in it instead of giving in to the impulse to suppress it.

Rey lifted one of the knives and, picking a target, she tracked it with her eyes, reaching out to feel the relation in space between the projectile and its intended home. In her mind, she drew a line between the two points and sent the knife flying toward the target; there was a dull thud as it hit home, right in the center. Rey grinned triumphantly "Now do all of them" Kylo called encouragingly; and she did. After sinking every knife into the middle of each target, Rey turned to him for approval, but he shook his head "Pull them all out and do it again." She obeyed, and once she'd repeated the feat, he ordered her to do it again and again, each time speeding up and changing the movement pattern of the targets. After about the twentieth time, she was growing tired of the lesson, but Kylo wouldn't relent; it seemed that he wouldn't be satisfied until she missed a target. Five more times later, Rey had had it; he had just told her to reset the course without even acknowledging the fact that she had hit all the targets at once while they were flying all around her. "Why can't he at least say 'Good job' every once in a while?" she grumbled to herself as she lifted her hand to comply. His voice broke through her thoughts again, a tinge of annoyance running through it "Rey, I said do it again." At this, her patience snapped. As if moving of its own accord, her wrist flicked in his direction, a blast of that same opalescent light from the first time her power awakened, went flying from her fingertips and hit Kylo square in the chest, throwing him flat on his back and knocking the wind from his lungs.

Rey let out a gasp, immediately regretting her actions; she took three running steps toward him to see if he was hurt and stopped short; he had raised his head, coughed a couple times, and turned to look at her. Rey's heart stopped; the look on his face told her, clear as day, that as soon as he got his hands on her she'd be severely punished. Whirling around so fast that she almost stumbled trying to get traction, Rey sprinted off into the forest, terrified to look over her shoulder; she knew he would be hot on her heels in no time.

After she'd run for some time, Rey ducked behind a large boulder to catch her breath, her chest heaving. As she rested, she periodically held her breath, listening for any sign that Kylo was getting closer, but she detected nothing but silence, not even the call of a bird broke through the quiet. She began to think that maybe she'd lost him, or that he'd decided not to follow her; maybe he figured that just giving her the idea that he was hunting her down was enough punishment. A slight breeze had begun to blow as Rey sat wondering what to do next; the breeze was cool, causing the hair on the back of her neck to raise up. The wind had just begun to pick up a little when she heard it, "Rey!" the growling whisper was carried by the wind right past her ear. She leapt to her feet and took off around the boulder, nearly running into Kyo himself as he stood on the other side, still bare chested, apparently waiting for her. She saw him just in time and dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding a collision. Her heart rejoiced; she'd escaped him and now had a chance to run even deeper into the forest, determined to be more careful in choosing her hiding place next time. Her flight was short lived; just as she was passing him, Kylo's hand flashed out and seized her by her tail, stopping her cold before dragging her back to him and shoving her, face first, against a tree, her arm twisted behind her back, effectively immobilizing her.

Looming over her, he pressed the length of his body against hers, pinning her to the tree, his cock hard and straining at the fastenings of his pants, pressing urgently into her back as he leaned in close and whispered in her ear "Do you really think you can escape me that easily, little satyrkind?" Rey felt her stomach drop at the sound of his words; she actually had thought that she had a real chance of evading his wrath, and now she would pay for her arrogance. With his free hand, he reached around and cupped her sex tightly "You belong to me, Rey, and your body knows it. Do you want me to show you how willingly it will obey me?" She remained silent, why did everything he said make her want to melt at his feet while at the same time put the fear of the gods in her?

While still holding her firmly in place, Kylo stepped back, and she her the rustle of his belt coming undone; using the belt, he bound her hands securely behind her back and led her over to a huge fallen log. Lifting her up, he seated her on the log and went about unlacing her jerkin and shift, pulling them open and leaving her bare to the world. A cool breeze flitted over Rey's skin, causing her nipples to pebble up in response; even though he'd pretty much already seen her naked, she felt too vulnerable, wishing desperately that her hands were free so she could cross them over her chest as the slightest shield against his probing gaze.

Her attention was yanked back to the present by the feeling of kylo pushing her down to lay on her back, having already undone the laces on her breeches when she was distracted, causing her to start to panic as he gripped her waistband and began to work them down her hips. Before she could protest, he had gotten her breeches down far enough to yank them all the way off, leaving her to frantically clutch her knees together, mortified at the idea of him seeing her so intimately exposed. He placed his hands on her knees and began to tug them apart, with Rey doing her best to resist him "Tsk, tsk." he clicked his tongue at her disapprovingly "We both know that you're not just resisting me; your body greatly desires to bend to my will, but you're being stubborn. We'll soon fix that." Reaching out, he dragged a thumb along the seam where her left thigh met her abdomen; being wildly ticklish, Rey yelped and jerkily bent her hip, lifting her knee toward her chest. Kylo was quicker than she, and before she could pull her legs back together, he had neatly placed her leg over his shoulder. Rey groaned, seeing that she'd been beaten, but it did nothing for the state of her nerves, in fact it was the opposite; it was all she could do to keep her hips down on the log, when she so badly wanted to wrench herself free.

Smirking smugly from his position above her, Kylo took little notice of her distress as he took in the view; sliding his hand up the thigh that was pressed into his hip, he let it come to rest at its apex, where he took one of his fingers and drew it through the outer folds of her pussy. The feeling made her cry out and convulse, and would have thrown her off the log, had he not had such a vice like grip on her lower body. "Well, well" he chuckled "Has no one ever touched you here before?" all she could do was shake her head, she was almost past using words coherently "Really? None of the young fauns wanted a taste?" He pinched her outer thigh, making her gasp and letting her know that he expected an answer "No!" she choked out "I was still considered a child, none of them would dare." Smiling possessively, he nodded "Good" He then held up his finger for her to see "Oh Rey, look how wet you are," he purred "Do you know that this is the purest essence of your power?" He placed his finger in his mouth, sucking her arousal off of it, his eyes immediately glowing brighter as he did so. "You know It'll never be enough, don't you? I will never be able to stop devouring you. But.." He began, "We can't have you flailing about like that, I want you to feel everything." He had been passively tracing circles on her outer thigh where he had pinched her just moments before; he stopped and trailed his fingers along her skin back to her knee "You're going to have to trust me. Close your eyes."

Rey hesitated for a second, and then obeyed, closing her eyes and trying to relax her wrecked nerves, The next thing she knew, she felt a sharp pain high up on her inner thigh; popping her head up, she was horrified to see Kylo biting down on her flesh, his sharp fangs buried halfway to the root "Wha-what?!" she managed to pant out "Shhhhh" he soothed, withdrawing his fangs and wiping away the little beads of her blood that had seeped to the surface "It was just a small amount of venom, and it'll help you relax." Rey was about to protest when she felt a warmth rushing over her like a wave and settling like a dull, heavy blanket over her entire body. She felt delirious, a slow smile spreading over her face. Kylo's hands on her skin now felt like warm, tingling velvet where their skin connected, and she wanted that feeling over every inch of her body. She felt him spreading her legs wider and she made no protest, wanting nothing else than to be touched by him. A slight alarm echoed in her brain when she felt something wet slither through her folds and then probe deeper into her pussy in long strokes; that wasn't at all the sensation she'd been expecting, but it felt delicious. It took all her strength to open her eyes and look down to see what was happening to her. If she could have, she would have yelped in surprise at the sight: Kylo was now down on one knee, his face buried in her sex, his hands gripping her thighs forcefully, and his eyes glowing brighter than she had ever seen. Noticing her staring at him, Kylo lifted his head and flicked his forked tongue at her before enclosing her entire sex with his mouth and sucking on her clit, his tongue sliding in and out with each stroke.

Even with Kylo's venom dulling her senses, the pleasure was overwhelming for Rey; each lap of his tongue against her clit made her arch her back and strain the belt that confined her movement. His movements became faster and more forceful; sliding a huge hand up her body, Kylo gripped her breast, squeezing it hard before pinching her nipple and rolling it between his thumb and forefinger. The stimulation was beginning to be too much for Rey; every stroke of his tongue against her clit dragged filthy moans from her lips "Oh Kylo" she cooed. Hearing his name whispered with such reverence lit a fire inside him; slipping a finger inside her pussy, he curled it upwards against that soft, fleshy spot deep inside her that made her whimper each time he touched it. Timing the movements of his finger with that of his tongue, he soon had her falling apart; her orgasm rushing from between her legs throughout her body like an electric current, peaking at her nipples, and rushing out again into Kylo's mouth, where he drank it down like a man lost in a dessert.

He continued slowly licking as she came down, until she cried, begging him to stop because she couldn't take it anymore. He then kissed his way up her bare body, reaching her neck and then her lips, taking her in his arms as he did so. When he finally pulled away, he gently re-laced her garments and helped her sit up, lifting her off the log and untying his belt from her wrists. As she went for her breeches, he held them out of her reach "I don't think you'll be needing these, you're a bit of a mess down there." She blushed deeply "And whose fault is that?" she retorted "Your own of course," he shot back "None of this would have happened if you hadn't decided to attack me when I was doing my best to help you learn to use your power." She shook her head incredulously, but knew it would be useless to argue "Have it your way," She sniffed as she started off for the cave. He quickly caught up to her and swept her into his arms, settling her on his hip like a babe, and carrying her breeches and the waistcoat he took off long before in the other hand; "You don't even wear underwear." he said waving the breeches at her, "how did you think nothing would happen when you're parading around like that?" She snatched at them "Well give me my clothes and it won't be a problem!" He shook his head, "No, you're filthy, you don't get them back now." She let out a frustrated sigh and gave up. He squeezed her ass once, and said airily "I think we both need a bath, don't you?"


	8. Chapter 8

When they arrived back at the cave, Kylo lit a roaring fire under the bathing cauldron with a wave of his hand. Rey, still clutched to his side, twisted around, looking over his shoulder at it as he went about getting ready to bathe "I thought you were a shape shifter. You can command elements as well?" He nodded, grabbing up towels and robes "I can alter my physical form, and I also exert control over the natural elements such as fire, water, air, etc. Being a warlock, I am also skilled in combat magic, as well as hexes and curses." "Am I able to learn those things? Elements and offensive abilities, I mean." She asked, idly twirling her finger in one of his soft, inky locks as she studied his face.

"We still haven't yet discovered the extent of your abilities; levitation and that blast of colored light you emit when you're feeling particularly annoyed or aroused are all that we know of so far, but," he laid the towels and robes down on the stone that supported the cauldron, still keeping Rey perched on his hip "but, from what I've seen, the nature of your power seems to lean more toward white magic than dark. I'll be able to teach you how to fight and defend yourself, but as far as my darker talents, curses and the like, your magic may very possibly resist performing them." "But it's my magic," Rey protested as he entered the cave to retrieve soap and other bathing essentials "shouldn't it bend to my will no matter what I want to do with it?" She was amazed when he actually laughed, deep and long, letting his head fall back as he did so "Rey," he said once he stopped laughing "Rey, you may be able to shape the actions of your power, but its source, it's very heart, cannot be changed. A white witch or warlock would never be able to place a death curse, just as a black witch is not capable of bringing someone back from the brink of death. All those who are gifted with magic sit somewhere between the two, and, together, we maintain the balance of life and death."

Rey ducked her head as they exited the cave "Kylo," she asked timidly "Are you a black warlock?" He looked down at her curiously "Are you worried that I'm only capable of evil?" She shyly drew circles on his chest with her finger, not meeting his gaze "Well, no, I don't believe you're evil. I just..." She trailed off, unsure of how to verbalize what she was feeling. He leaned in and kissed her behind her ear "No. I'm not a black warlock. My power does lean toward the dark end of the magic spectrum, and can be quite destructive, but I don't possess the ability to extinguish life at a whim. Think of it this way: magic in and of itself is not inherently evil or good, even death magic; its nature depends entirely on the character of the one wielding it." "I see." She answered. He took her chin between his thumb and forefinger "I know how intense I can be, and that my hunger for you and the taste of your power can be intimidating, but I never want you to fear me. I will never do anything to hurt you, Rey." Something welled up in Rey's throat that she couldn't explain; she simply nodded, knowing he meant what he said.

By this time they had made it back to the bath "You know you can put me down," Rey laughed "My legs are perfectly capable of supporting me, you know." "Are you sure?" He asked, gazing into her eyes, a cocky smile that never quite made it to his mouth, lurking behind his own "Because if I remember correctly, they wouldn't stop shaking not very long ago; I'd hate to set you down if you're just going to fall." She blushed deeply and hid her face in his shoulder, too embarrassed to offer any kind of rebuttal. Kylo kissed her forehead and bounced her in his arms "Come on, the water's hot by now, and I don't know about you, but I have this strange soreness in my chest, almost feels like I got hit by some kind of magic blast, and I could use a hot bath." She sat up in his arms, and he began pulling at the laces of her leather jerkin with one hand, untying it and sliding it off her shoulders, leaving her in just her shift "You know, you could help out a little, too." he remarked as he started to work it up her hips. She giggled nervously as she rolled his bandaged sleeves down one of his arms and then the other, trying hard not to focus on the feeling of his skin beneath her fingertips, and the muscles that flexed beneath it, and let the sleeves fall to the ground. Kylo nudged Rey to lift her arms above her head so that he could pull the garment over her head, to which she complied, but then immediately brought them down to cover herself. She was taken aback when he bucked his hips against her lightly as if to remind her of an unfinished task "You're not done, little satyrkind" he smirked, waiting for her to get his meaning. "You don't mean-" she started, flushing all the way up to the tips of her ears. He cocked an eyebrow, daring her not to cover her face and refuse. She squared her shoulders, determined not to be cowed this time, and reached down between the two of them, refusing to look as she unfastened his breeches and pushed them down his hips. He chuckled and stepped up onto the platform, approaching the cauldron, and setting Rey gently down into the water; she scooted over and made a point of looking away as he climbed into the bath next to her.

Kylo motioned her over, and drew her between his knees before starting his task of taking her buns down "You know you can stop wearing these if you want to, the standards of maturity that kept you in your adolescent status don't apply to you; you're a woman whenever you decide to acknowledge it." "I know," she replied "I just feel that they remind me of my mother; she loved to tie them up for me every morning, and take them down in the evenings. We'd talk for hours, long after she was done. I know I've only been gone a few days, but I know in my heart that I'll never return to that life; maybe I want to hold on to the feeling for as long as I can." "That's understandable," he replied "You shouldn't feel that you must rush to change yourself now that you know a little more about where you come from; change as you desire, on your own terms."

After washing Rey's hair, he proceeded to scrub her back and arms with the soap and washcloth; he spun her around and, grabbing one of her feet, went about eliciting peals of hysterical giggling from her as he got in between each of her toes. She knew he was enjoying her ticklishness, and she would have been furious if she had been able to contain her sobs of laughter as he all too thoroughly cleaned her sensitive feet.

When he finally released her, Rey grabbed another washcloth and crawled around behind Kylo, intending to return the favor; she was surprised when he looked slightly uncomfortable, and insisted that she didn't have to help him bathe "You don't have to wash my hair, Rey, I'm perfectly able to do it myself." He objected. She waved away his protests and continued with her task: wetting down his hair, and working it into a good lather "You washed my hair today, even though you know that I'm not sore anymore, and can do it myself, so you'd better just let me have my way." She teased. He sighed deeply, putting on the air of someone who was resigning themselves to endure an unpleasant ordeal. Rey ignored his attitude, and busied herself rinsing the soap out of his hair; as she did so, she allowed herself free reign to take in every dip and curve of his body, feeling especially bold now that he wasn't looking at her. She was amazed by the number of scars that snaked over large swathes of his skin; it looked like he'd fought in a great many battles, and likely lost a number of them. After she finished with his hair, Rey washed his back gently and thoroughly, memorizing how his skin felt as her fingertips grazed over it. In that moment, she felt a strong pull of compassion; she didn't know what kind of horrors he'd encountered in his life, and she couldn't possibly guess, but that made her want to know and protect him even more,

Once she had washed his back and arms, Rey grabbed a bottle of oil that was among the bathing items and poured some into her hand, smoothing it over his skin, and working it into the muscles. Although he was initially stiff when she started to massage his back, Kylo soon relaxed under her touch, eventually leaning his head back on her shoulder as her nimble fingers worked their way over his shoulders and biceps; she even thought that she heard him humming quietly to himself several times. She eventually reached around and began running the washcloth over his chest, when Kylo grasped her wrist and pulled her in for a deep kiss, the hand not gripping her arm, cupping the side of her neck, its thumb caressing the line of her jaw. His tongue reached out, swiping along the seam of her lips; she opened her mouth to allow him entry, and hesitantly met his with her own, sighing happily when she found that he had put away his fangs. Her sigh brought out a low growl in him, and he swept her in to his lap, making her straddle him; he squeezed her tightly against him and she felt his cock twitch against her ass.

At first Rey was shocked and made to pull away from him, but she reminded herself that she didn't have to say no just because it seemed the right thing to do; she could do exactly as she wanted. With her moral dilemma put to rest, she slipped her arms around Kylo's neck and kissed him deeply. The next minute, his hands seemed to be everywhere, digging into the muscles of her back and sliding over her shoulders and arms, sometimes cupping her face, but always finding their way back down to grope her ass; all the while planting kisses on her neck, over her collar bone, and down her chest, making Rey giddy with excitement.

As they continued their exploration of each other's bodies, Rey felt Kylo's cock getting harder and harder underneath her; it was now fully upright, resting persistently in the valley between her ass cheeks, refusing to be ignored. Her heartbeat quickened each time she was reminded of its presence when Kylo would crush her tightly against his body, rocking up against her in an almost instinctual way; she was finally going to lose her virginity, and to a man she had only just met. She wondered if it would hurt when he thrust himself into her; would he try to be gentle? Rey suddenly had an intense desire to be crushed under the bulk of his weight; she couldn't imagine a safer feeling in the world.

As she lost herself to her fantasies and his touch, Rey didn't realize that she had been unconsciously rubbing herself along Kylo's shaft, trying to match the undulations of his own hips; it came to her attention when he reached down and gripped her thighs with both hands and pulled her in to him tightly, stilling her motions. He'd buried his head in the crook of her neck, his breathing coming fast and ragged. Rey stroked her fingers through his hair, waiting for him to make the next move; when he didn't, she leaned back and moved his head so that their foreheads rested against each other. "Are you alright?" she asked, giving him a searching look. He nodded, intertwining his fingers with hers and holding them to his chest "Rey, you do understand that your abilities are deeply tied to sex and arousal, right? Bodily fluids are the essence of sexual exchange, and even those who don't derive their power from it like you do, feel an effect." She nodded, remembering how he seemed invigorated after going down on her in the forest. "Historically, magic users on different ends of the light and dark have avoided joining in such a way because it can result in unpredictable reactions; your magic is light, mine is dark, and you are exponentially more sensitive to such interactions..." he trailed off, seeming to search for the right words to convey his concern "You think that you might hurt me." she finished his thought for him. He bent his head in acknowledgment "And right after I told you that was something that I would never do."

She allowed him to lift her out of the bath, and remained silent as he dried her off and then himself, wrapping them both in robes before heading into the cave. Truth be told, she was frustrated and her feelings were slightly hurt; not only did she want to again experience the euphoria of orgasm at his hands, but she also wanted the same for him, the thought of her body being the cause of his pleasure made her hot with desire and she couldn't understand why he would turn it down when he couldn't really be sure that anything bad would happen.

When they got inside, Kylo went to the back of the room and came back with a black garment in his hand "Here," he said holding it out to her "you should have something to sleep in other than a robe that's three sizes too big." Rey held up the garment to look it over, and found that it was a chemise, similar to the one she wore under her jerkin, except this one was significantly shorter, and seemed to have been made from one of Kylo's old shirts. Remembering how unbothered he was by being naked around her, Rey let her robe slip from her shoulders and fall to the ground, before pulling the night dress over her head, noting how he gazed at her hungrily as she did so. The shirt barely passed the tops of her thighs, and she was sure he had cut it that way on purpose, but she appreciated that he had added a slit in the back so it could drape around her tail.

They didn't speak much more that evening, both seemed to be caught up in their own thoughts as they went about their bedtime rituals. Rey fell asleep quite readily, and had a strange dream about trying to climb a tree to pick an apple, but falling each time she was just about to touch it. She awoke after the third fall, and lay there for a while contemplating what such a dream might mean, when a strange noise caught her attention. The noise was soft and she had to strain her ears to hear it, but what she did hear sounded like skin lightly slapping against skin. Turning her head, she deduced that it was coming from Kylo's side of the room, and decided to investigate, concerned that he might be having another nightmare. Much like she had done the first time she'd gone to check on him, Rey slid out of her bed and onto her hands and knees on the floor, making sure to be as quiet as possible so as not to disturb the sleeping warlock. Crawling to the side of the bed opposite where Kylo usually slept, Rey once again just peeked over the edge to get a glimpse of his state of sleeping; what she saw made her heart drop into her stomach, and her arousal come seeping down her thighs, making her desperately wish that she made underwear a staple of her wardrobe. Kylo lay stretched out before her, his right arm flung over his eyes and forehead, while the other hand gripped his erect cock, moving up and down in slow, deliberate strokes.

Rey felt her mouth go dry; she'd never seen anyone masturbate before, and even though she knew that it was possible to pleasure herself, she'd only thought about it passively, and never considered that witnessing someone else, especially a man like Kylo, pleasuring himself could be so...compelling. She watched as he increased the speed of his motions, grunting quietly every so often, and sometimes thrusting his hips upward into his hand. She had a strong desire to reach down and touch herself, but she was so mesmerized by how all his muscles seemed to flex at once as he moved, that she was frozen in place. His moans grew louder, and his breathing faster, Rey couldn't help but lift her head higher, fascinated by what she was seeing; Kylo gave a final thrust of his hips, and as he spilled onto his hand, he let out a whispered "Fuck, Rey!" his eyes flashing open, pinning her to the spot.

They stayed there staring at one another for what felt like ages before Kylo reached out his hand toward her and broke the silence "Rey, take off your clothes and come here." She felt a shiver roll down her spine, she didn't know whether with excitement or fear, but she knew that she couldn't deny him. Climbing to her feet, she took hold of her night dress by its hem and lifted it over her head, letting it fall to the floor; she stood there, completely bare under his gaze, uncertain of what to do next until he beckoned her to him again. She crawled across the bed toward him until she was within reach, at which point he pulled her in close, cupping her face with his clean hand and drawing her down into a kiss. At his prompting, Rey moved to straddle him, noticing as she did so, that his cock was still hard; Kylo gripped her thigh hard, lifting his hips slightly in his desperate need for friction. Seeing that he was still holding his other hand out to the side, Rey reached for it, bringing it to her lips and shyly licking the cum from his hand, eliciting a groan from him as she slipped one of his fingers all the way into her mouth and sucked it clean, feeling as she did so a small rush of power flow through her, this power seemed darker and heavier than her own.

"Rey what are you doing?" he sighed throwing his head back on his pillow in frustration "We talked about this, I can't do something that might harm you." "You talked, I listened." she replied, wiggling her hips and smiling blushingly at the sound of his breath becoming more and more ragged; "There's no guarantee that anything will happen at all." He slipped his hand between them, curling two fingers up into her "You know I can give you what you want without risk, Rey, there's no need to put yourself in any danger." It was her turn to cry out this time; she desperately wanted to let him continue, but she couldn't let him dissuade her "What I want," she gasped "Is to bring you pleasure like you brought me. What I want-" here she faltered, almost falling prey to her fear and shyness, but she soldiered on "I want to feel you inside me as you take your pleasure." His eyes which had been widening as she spoke her first sentence sharpened suddenly as she uttered the last words; she rushed ahead, trying to explain herself and reassure him "I don't think you'll hurt me, but I know you're afraid that-" he cut her off, grabbing her arm and flipping her onto her back and holding her there as he shifted himself above her "Let's be clear about one thing, little one," he purred in her ear, that predatory gleam lighting his eerie eyes once again "This was never about my fear, I only wished for your comfort, but seeing as you think yourself so strong and fearless, I will grant you what you seem to so desire."

Rey recognized this Kylo, he was the same as the one who shackled her in the forest before rendering her helpless to his touch; and now she had just told him that she wanted him to use her for his pleasure, while at the same time mistakenly calling him fearful. She'd irritated his pride, and now he'd give her what she asked for, but he'd do it his own way, just to assert his dominance. As much as this part of him frightened her, she could feel a sea welling up between her legs when he looked at her like that.

After stacking two pillows, Kylo leaned in and kissed her hard, then drew back and gave her one last hungry look before turning her over and pushing her face first into the pillows, his hand pressed firmly between her shoulder blades. Rey wrapped her arms around the pillows, trying to calm herself for whatever came next. Sensing her rapidly increasing heartbeat, he began planting kisses from her neck, all the way down her back until he reached her hip, where she felt the sharp sting of his fangs as he sunk them into her; she jumped slightly and then felt the flood of warmth and haze that came with his bites. Positioning himself with his knees on either side of her thighs, he gripped her tail and dragged her ass upwards so that she was completely exposed, he then seized it in both hands, spreading her pussy with his thumbs, and taking a moment to admire the sight "You have such a beautiful little cunt, Rey. And it's so fucking wet."

Keeping her spread, Kylo dipped his hips forward, running his cock along her outer lips, spreading her arousal all over it; he took a moment to rub his cock against her clit several times, pulling a sob of frustration from her. Chuckling at Rey's state of helplessness, he finally began nudging the head of his cock into her pussy inch by agonizing inch, not wanting to thrust himself in all at once. When he buried his cock in her warmth, he took a minute to allow her to adjust, leaning down and whispering in her ear "I'm going to take my pleasure from your body, Rey, and pour every last drop back into that sweet cunt of yours." He then began to move in earnest, pulling out almost entirely and pushing himself back into her, drawing little whimpers out of her with each thrust.

As Rey became more accustomed to his thrusts, she started to love the way it felt to be completely filled by him; she began pushing her hips backward in time with his lunges to allow him to penetrate her as deeply as possible. The sound of slapping wet flesh filled the cave, mingling with the grunts and moans coming from both of them. Kylo picked up his pace, placing one hand firmly on the back of her neck, while the other gripped her hip, holding it tightly so he could push into her even harder.

As he was reaching his climax, Kylo twisted his fingers in Rey's hair and hauled her up against him, turning her head to kiss her, and pushing his tongue into her mouth. She responded by reaching behind them and gripping his ass, pulling him in harder; when he withdrew from her mouth, she moaned against his lips "Oh Kylo, fuck me until I can't breathe, PLEASE!" With a growl, he threw her back down onto the bed and, spreading her legs, began slamming into her harder than ever, reaching around and rubbing her clit roughly, making her cry out. With one final thrust, he squeezed one of her breasts and pinched her clit, spilling his seed deeply inside her. Rey was following with her own orgasm when Kylo's cum started shooting into her, and it catapulted her over the edge, building and building until it broke over her like a crushing wave.

Kylo let himself collapse on top of her, nuzzling into her hair, but it wasn't over for Rey; even though her orgasm had ended, the heat underneath her skin continued to grow like wildfire until she was crying out for the white hot pain to stop. Kylo jumped up immediately, flipping her onto her back and placing his hands on her abdomen; he uttered words she didn't recognize over and over until she felt a soothing coolness sweep over her body and quench the heat, leaving her exhausted but fine. Kylo pulled her in to his chest, stroking her hair and muttering jumbled apologies; she pressed a finger to his lips to silence him "I told you I wanted it," she whispered "and it was completely worth it." Seeing the happy smile spread over her face, he sighed "I see there's no changing your mind. It's a good thing that I think I have just the spell to prevent that with for the future. Seems like we'll be needing it." She laughed happily and snuggled into him as he drew a blanket over them; "You'll definitely be needing it if that was any indication of what you have in store for me."


	9. Chapter 9

When Rey woke up, she was unsure if it was still night time or if the day had arrived; living in the muted light of the forest had made it hard to tell the difference, but she decided that it was still night and she'd make no effort to get up. Assessing her surroundings, she found that she was still clutched to Kylo's chest, though she must have rolled during her slumber, and now his chin rested lightly on the crown of her head, and she could feel his breath occasionally passing over her hair. His arms were wrapped around her loosely, and, after feeling around in the darkness, she took one of his hands from where it lay and held it in both of her own, turning it this way and that, and spreading his fingers, marveling at how it was more than twice the size of her hand when she pressed them together palm to palm; at first she had been unnerved by the sheer size of him, but right then she realized that it was comforting to have his sleeping bulk surrounding her.

She was so engrossed in her inspection of her lover's hands that she hadn't noticed that his deep, even breathing had stopped until she felt his eyes gazing at her; he hadn't moved in the slightest, but she knew that if she turned and looked up, she'd find those eyes of yellow, gold and slight green glowing down on her out of the inky blackness. She didn't "dislike" his eyes, but she couldn't deny that they had an overwhelming effect; every time he gazed at her, she felt like a small animal, trapped in the mesmerizing stare of a great snake who wanted to consume her, and that feeling hadn't changed since the first time she experienced it. Even thought they'd become so intimate, it had been in a such a short span of time, and she was aware that there was much she didn't know about him, and that he didn't yet feel entirely at ease with her.

Such thoughts troubled Rey, and instead of following her first impulse to turn and kiss him, she chose not to acknowledge that she knew he was awake, and began untangling herself from his embrace, making as if to leave the bed. His grip tightened almost immediately and he nuzzled his face into the nape of her neck, speaking sleepily through her hair "Where do you think you're going, little one?" Her heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice; he sounded so warm and husky and she didn't really want to get up, but her doubts had made her feel a need for space "I'm just going to my bed," her excuse wasn't a strong one, but he hadn't exactly told her that she was always welcome in his. "You live in my bed now, satyrkind," he chuckled quietly against her skin "I'll tell you when you can leave it." She mentally groaned, he KNEW what it did to her when he took an authoritative tone; all hope of resistance was dying with his every word as she tried her last desperate effort "Um I have to, um, pee" she stuttered out as she tried again to wriggle free, wanting to kick herself as soon as she said it for such a weak attempt.

"Do you?" his voice poured over her like warm honey, making her spine tingle and melting her resolve; he began to plant soft kisses from her shoulder, all along her neck and up to her ear where he took her earlobe between his teeth and tugged gently, "Do you, Rey?" he repeated, making it clear that he expected an answer. She squirmed in his embrace, pushing vainly at his hands where they encircled her in an iron grip, letting out a whimpered "No". Kylo hummed approvingly as he brought his lower arm to encircle her shoulders and firmly cup one of her breasts, while the other delved down between her legs, teasing them apart as she instinctively clenched them together "You know," he whispered in deep, silky tones "that instinct of yours to hide yourself will eventually disappear, and you'll spread yourself wide open for me at the slightest provocation." Groaning at his words, Rey let her legs part hesitantly, and bit down on her fist as he slipped first his middle and then his ring fingers into her. Forgetting that Kylo's cock had considerably stretched her inexperienced sex only hours before, Rey yelped and gripped his arm with her free hand as his large fingers stretched her sore flesh. He immediately stilled his movements and she felt him nuzzling into her neck before that sharp, familiar pain, and then all she felt was warmth and his skin on hers. He waited for her to ride out the first wave of his venom before asking "Are you done Rey? Or would you like to continue?" She leaned back and pressed several kisses along his jawline "Oh please, never stop touching me, Kylo!" He growled approvingly and redoubled his efforts, plunging his fingers in and out of her, eliciting little whimpers and cries every time he pressed the heel of his hand against her clit.

All Rey could feel was dull heat and waves of pleasure rolling over her as her body responded enthusiastically to his ministrations; it had occurred to her that now that she had been shown the possibilities of the pleasures of the flesh, she would never get enough; she had started to crave this man's touch, the feeling of his skin against hers, the way he sounded when he was chasing his own pleasure deep within her body, even the smell of it all she loved, recalling how she had licked his seed off his fingers and it's heady taste.

She was called violently back to the present when, with a hard movement of his hand, Kylo had drawn the orgasm out of her, sending the rippling effects throughout her entire being as she went rigid in his arms, and then collapsed limp and boneless against him. His cock was straining against her back and she felt him reach down and take hold of it, pushing her tail out of the way, to guide it onto her "No, wait" she called out quietly, reaching back to cover his hand with her own. She could feel his questioning gaze, but she quickly rolled over to face him, cupping his face in her hands and staring deep into those glowing irises "I want it like this," she whispered "I want to look into your eyes while you're inside me, I want to watch you come." He returned her gaze with mounting intensity, Rey could almost feel the heat radiating off his skin. He said nothing, but shifted his weight on top of her while she let her legs fall open to allow him closer, her heart beat fluttering in her ears. He remained there looking down at her, and rather than immediately plunge himself into her, he suddenly swooped down and pressed his mouth to hers with all the passion he couldn't verbalize, encircling his arms beneath her and crushing her against his body.

When he finally broke away from her, Kylo drew back a bit, supporting himself on his hands while he looked down at Rey. She couldn't quite read his expression, was it curiosity? Or the desire to communicate something that he couldn't make himself say, perhaps. She lay there beneath him, silent, asking nothing more of him than he wanted to give, and as they shared that moment, Rey saw his eyes begin to fade in their brilliance; soon, the room was completely black, nothing stood out in the dark, their visual senses completely muted, leaving them with nothing but the feel of skin on skin and the sound of the other's heart beat. Rey felt an overwhelming sense of gravity in Kylo's actions; he had let down that barrier that allowed him the power of seeing her every move, while keeping her at arm's length. They were equals now.

With a snap of his fingers, Kylo ignited the tree of candles that stood beside the bed, bathing the pair in their red-gold glow. Rey gazed into the now-human pair of eyes looking down at her; they didn't seem nearly as unfamiliar as she would expect after such a drastic change, she still knew the person looking back at her out of those eyes, but it was like a mask had been dropped. They were a deep, dark brown; so deep that she felt as though she could spend a lifetime drifting down through their depths and never reach an end. She saw the same steely pride and confidence that had always been there, but there was also a soft kindness that lay deep beneath it all. Rey smiled and brushed a lock of hair out of his face "Thank you" she whispered before pulling him down into a kiss.

They lay there spreading kisses all over every inch of the other's exposed skin until the roll of Kylo's hips, and the need in Rey's little moans became too much to ignore, and, with one swift motion, he surged up into her. Rey's head hit the pillow with a sobbing gasp as she clutched at his shoulders and clamped her legs around him, desperate for an anchor as her vision blotted out for a moment. Kylo let out a deep groan at the feeling of his cock completely enveloped in her wet heat; propping himself up on one elbow, he reached down with his free hand hiked Rey's thigh up around his hip, using it as leverage so he could plunge into her even more deeply. She saw stars as he pounded into her over and over again, knowing that, little by little, she was losing all sense of her surroundings, their passion threatening to sweep her away. He stared down at her as he claimed her flesh, taking in every little whimper; he loved how she looked with her eyes screwed shut and her mouth hanging open, each cry that fell from it making his cock even harder.

Taking in the entire sight of her, he was fascinated by how her plump little breasts bounced up and down with each of his movements, her rosy nipples protruding like tiny pink pebbles; he leaned down and took one into his mouth, sucking on it eliciting a yelp from Rey as her eyes popped open to see what exactly he was doing to her. He grinned and sucked harder, making her squirm under him; releasing her nipple with a pop, he saw the blood rushing to the area, making it pucker out even more "Rey, you make me just want to eat you" he growled before dipping his head again, this time taking her other nipple between his teeth and worrying it until her breath came in ragged sobs. Releasing it, he attacked the undersides of her breasts until they were dotted with angry red marks. His marks. He felt his ownership of her flesh all the way down into his cock as it strained to bury itself as deeply into her as it could. He'd had enough, it was time to show her what he could make her body do; lifting her legs to his shoulders, he let his weight fall on her more heavily as he pressed into her even greater urgency. He leaned in and pressed his mouth to hers, sliding his tongue between her lips and swallowing every sound she made as he angled his cock at the most sensitive part of her soft little pussy. His aim was true and just at the last possible second, he reached up and ran a rough thumb over one of her horns "Now sing, my little satyrkind" he whispered, and she was instantly coming apart in his arms, her pleasure gushing out of her, all over his cock and her own thighs. He smiled, quickening his pace, and beginning the chant for his spell; he delivered several more powerful thrusts before burying his face in her neck and gripping her thighs hard, spilling into her and releasing his magic from his hands, seamlessly negating the painful effects of their joining and collapsing on top of her with one last groan.

Kylo sighed and moved as if to withdraw from her body, but Rey stopped him "Don't" she whispered. He cocked his head to the side, silently questioning her "If you pull yourself out, all of your...you know" she blushed deeply, unwilling to let those words pass her lips "It'll all spill out." She covered her face with her hands, completely mortified and unable to explain herself. He smiled amusedly and pressed, trying to suss out her intentions "Yes it will," he continued where she left off "is that not something you want to happen, Rey?" she groaned, not wanting to respond, but acknowledging that she had no choice "I can feel your power in it. It feels warm and it tingles. And I've never felt so wonderfully full. Please just stay." Saying her piece, she buried her face in his shoulder and waited for his reaction. She didn't see that his eyes lit up with desire again and he had to struggle to suppress it again, but he managed it and nodded, kissing the top of her head "All right, Rey. If that's what you want." He rolled them to the side, wrapping one of her legs around his waist so he could firmly lodge his not-quite-soft cock inside her, and then pulled her close, running his fingers through her hair as she quickly drifted off once again.


	10. Chapter 10

The world was soft and warm, there were two strong arms wrapped around her, and Rey didn't want to open her eyes. Despite doing her best to cling to the last vestiges of sleep that hung around her, her slumber slowly faded away and she was forced to come back to the conscious world. Peeking out of one eye begrudgingly, the sight that met her made Rey pop her head up abruptly. She was sitting cradled in Kylo's lap, submerged in the bath, while Kylo himself was dozing off, his arms still tightly holding her to his chest; her movements roused him slightly, and, without opening his eyes, he sleepily leaned forward to kiss her forehead before returning to his relaxed position. "How did I get out here?" she asked finally, allowing him to pull her back down to him again. He laughed and tucked a damp tendril of hair behind her ear "We slept for almost a whole day; I woke up a few hours ago and carried you out here, I'm surprised you're only now waking up." She groaned "It feels like I've been in a coma, I'm not entirely sure that I'm not still sleeping."

Resting his chin on the crown of her head, he nodded, gently twisting a finger into her steam-induced curls "Well you'd better decide to wake up, we've spent enough time in bed, it's time to get back to your training." "Oh is it?" she murmured against his damp skin "And what will you be teaching me today, lord Ren?" His chest heaved against her head a little with the sarcastic snort he let out at the formality of the title "Lord Ren? Where was that kind of respect when you were hurling energy balls at my chest?" he grumbled. The giggle Rey had at the memory of how he had gone flying backward when she had blasted him ended in a shiver as she remembered what had directly followed "I think you earned it soon afterward." she remarked with a nervous laugh before quickly changing the subject "Anyway, you were going to tell me what kind of training you're going to subject me to today, what is it?" He sat up and wiped a hand across his eyes; Rey immediately noticed that he had returned to his glowing snake like eyes, and even though they were still unnerving to look at, she found that they weren't nearly as intimidating as they'd been before. "I think it's time to teach you to defend yourself; you can't learn killing or maiming curses, because you're too far on the light side of the magical spectrum, but with those blasts of light and some practice of actual combat techniques, you could very easily protect yourself when you're on your own."

"You'd actually let me go somewhere on my own?" Rey asked with feigned incredulity "I thought I lived in your bed now and I 'belong' to you" Kylo rolled his eyes and laid a large wet hand across her face, covering her eyes and smothering her laughter "You're lucky I'm teaching you at all, you're a pain in the ass" he grumbled as she sputtered against his hand, simultaneously laughing and protesting the encumbrance. She finally pried his hand from her face and wiggled around on his lap until she was facing him, she then threw her arms around his neck and rolled her weight to the side as hard as she could, attempting to throw him off balance and push him under the water while yelling "Just teach me right now!" Despite being taken by surprise, Kylo would not be so easily subdued; he immediately tightened his grip on her waist and, using her forward motion, merely stood up, hauling her with him in the process. He stood there for a moment holding her up, her limbs flailing awkwardly, before unceremoniously dropping her into the water.

"It's a good thing you're feeling feisty today, you'll need all of that energy" he stood there, arms crossed over his chest, smirking down at her in a way that made Rey want to kneel at his feet and-"Ugh"-she shook the salacious thoughts from her mind; she needed to focus on getting in the mindset for training and not dwelling on all the things she'd like to do to that beautiful body of his. Rey checked herself- wasn't that EXACTLY what was involved in getting in the mindset to use her power? She was pretty sure that he had told her to embrace those feelings instead of suppressing them, that was the key to making her power work. Smiling to herself, Rey climbed out of the bath and dried off, wondering as she did so, what exactly Kylo had in mind for self defense lessons.

Kylo must have caught wind of what was on her mind, because as soon as she had gotten herself completely dry and rung out all the water from her tail, he came bounding out of the bath, soaking wet, and snatched her up, spinning her around and shaking his head, flinging the water from his hair all over her until she was just as wet as she had been when she emerged from the water, yelling "I can tell you're thinking about something dirty, I think you need another bath!" as he tickled her. Rey shrieked, her limbs flailing as she tried to get some kind of grip on him and get away; he merely laughed at her and pressed his face into her neck, nipping at her skin. When he finally let her down, she was out of breath and her cheeks were flushed, a half-serious scowl crossing her features; Kylo grinned and wrapped her in a towel, dropping a kiss on her nose and then grabbing his own towel to wrap around his waist before he headed into the cave "Get dressed, Rey! We have a lot of work to do."

Once they had eaten and gotten dressed, they made their way to the clearing that Kylo had been using to conduct Rey's training exercises. He had no props or tasks set up this time, he merely handed her a long wooden stick; it was a plain looking staff of a common hardwood that came to a few inches above her head when she held it upright, and sturdy, just the right thickness that she could grip it firmly. Rey held the staff in her hands, feeling it's weight and how it extended away from her. Turning to Kylo with a quizzical expression she asked "What is this for?" He had his back turned to her and was unwrapping an object much the same shape, but considerably larger, from its lamb skin wrappings "It is whatever you need it to be." he answered, turning to face her, the thing in his hands now revealed. It was a staff, but nothing like the one Rey was holding, this one was almost twice as long and jet black; and although it was twisted and gnarled like a length of driftwood, Rey couldn't quite tell if it was truly from a tree, or if it was some kind of strange metal. At one end, the staff held a large red crystal that looked like a ruby the size of her fist, though unlike the gems she'd seen pictures of, it had no meticulously cut facets; it appeared to grow out of the staff similar to how anemones seemed to spring from the rocks in tide pools that she'd seen as a child when her mother took her to the sea. At its other end, a dual-edged blade, shaped like a scythe was fixed to the tip; honed razor sharp, the blade was as black as the staff itself, the only thing that distinguished it as a different material was how it glinted eerily in the low light.

Moving on from the memory, Rey asked Kylo "What do you mean it's whatever I want it to be? Mine doesn't have a crystal on it. Can I cast spells with it?" He shook his head "Staffs like mine are not really used to cast spells specifically, they're really just tools that can help to focus one's magic on a particular task, or to enhance the power of the ability you already possess. We're not yet sure whether your magic is the kind that would benefit from such a tool, but I can teach you to use it as a weapon to defend yourself, and in the process learn more about the nature of your power. If your power is indeed the type that can utilize a staff, then we can build you a staff and get you a crystal of your own." Rey thought for a minute "What do you mean when you say that my magic might not be the kind that would work with a staff? Are there different kinds?" He nodded "The kind of magic that works best with a staff is the kind that projects; it reaches out, wants to connect, make contact, whether for god or ill. This magic radiates out from the one who possesses it, and though it is found in magic users on all ranges of the spectrum, it is most predisposed to offensive spells." He held his staff out flat in both hands, "A staff provides a focal point for directing power, makes it more precise; it also amplifies it. Think of how you can focus sunlight through a lens; sunlight on its own is broad, unfocused, and therefore harmless, but, focused through a lens, it can burn and start a fire. Some magic users even utilize much smaller implements such as wands to perform more fine tuned spells."

Rey laughed a little "Except that you aren't harmless without that staff. I've never seen you use offensive magic, but something tells me that you could still do damage without it." He smiled, looking down at the staff fondly "Yes, you're right that I still have power without it, but it makes it easier to cast powerful spells without having to use a huge amount of focus. It's most useful for large scale battles." She considered his words "Does that mean you've been in battles before, Kylo?" Frowning, he gripped the staff more tightly, as if recalling something particularly unpleasant "This staff has seen me through many difficult times, some I'd rather leave buried in the past, but yes, I have seen war and battles."

He lifted his head and straightened his shoulders, letting the blade end of his staff touch the ground lightly "Enough about that. Today we're going to start you with a few basic moves; you need to learn to block and strike efficiently, once you have those mastered, we can build from there." Rey passed her staff from one hand to the other playfully "Aren't you going to tell me about the kind of magic that doesn't benefit from a staff? Also, shouldn't you be teaching me to hunt? I'm far more likely to run into a bear or some monster out here than I am to end up in a battle with other people somewhere." Kylo lifted an annoyed eyebrow "If you would rather lead these training sessions, then by all means, tell me how you'd like to be taught." Rey flashed a sheepish smile, still passing her staff from hand to hand "You're right, I'm sorry. It's just that going out hunting with you sounds exciting, and I haven't had much excitement in my life up until now." He relaxed a little "I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I need to make sure that you are prepared to defend yourself before I put you in any kind of danger." She covered the end of her staff with both hands, leaning her chin on them and giving him her most persuasive smile "But I wouldn't be in danger if you're around. You're stronger than anything we could run into out here, right?" Rolling his eyes at her flirting, Kylo let out an exasperated sigh "If you can successfully block five of my strikes, and land one hit on me, then I'll take you to find something real to fight, does that work for you?" Rey gave two little excited bounces on the tips of her toes and nodded furiously, her tail swishing back and forth in eagerness "Yes! I can do that!" He responded with a groan before patting her on the head and picking up a plain staff of his own "I only brought my staff to explain its purpose, I hope you didn't think I'd actually try to attack you with it. Now! Let's begin."

They spent the remainder of the day trading strikes, with Rey finding out that fulfilling their bargain was much easier in theory than put into action. She had managed to successfully block one or two of his strikes, but no matter how fast she was, she could never land a blow of her own. By the time they were done, she was sore and bruised, wishing she had never agreed to his terms. Kylo was fatigued but in good spirits, playfully ruffling her hair as they put away their gear "You'll get it eventually, satyrkind, don't be too hard on yourself." She swatted at his hand, irritated by both his cheerfulness and her failure "Let's just go home," she muttered. "Home?" he asked, almost exultant at that point "So you've decided to stay indefinitely, I suppose?" "Ugh!" she groaned "Will you just shut up? Yes, I'm definitely staying." he laughed and scooped her up, throwing her over his shoulder "Alright then, let's go home."


	11. Chapter 11

Over the course of the next few weeks, Kylo focused on little else than teaching Rey how to fight and defend herself; he pushed her relentlessly, making her perform each maneuver over and over again, and then putting them into practice sparring with him. They started out with staffs, but he also taught her to fight without a weapon, emphasizing the importance of being able to defend herself in all situations. She hated it at first; it seemed like all she was doing was getting knocked on her ass over and over again. Sometimes Kylo would laugh at her, but he'd usually just order her up and make her repeat the exercise until she performed it to his satisfaction. Eventually Rey began to get the hang of it; she still wasn't coming close to presenting a challenge to him, but she started learning his patterns of movement, and developing ways of modifying her own movements that served her better. She found that she could use her tail as a counterbalance, and if she flicked it hard as she lunged, she could propel herself forward with greater force; she also learned that Kylo's long reach was most dangerous the farther apart they were, and that if she could get in close to him, he had a more difficult time making contact.

After many long hours, bruises, and dirt stains, Rey had learned to block Kylo's strikes quite well; she'd grown to anticipate the considerable weight that came with each of his blows, and found that deflecting them was preferable to blocking them head on, and often helped her avoid the jarring and soreness from a full block. It was almost pure luck when she finally landed a blow on him. She'd been knocked down for what seemed like the hundredth time that day, and it was wearing on her. Like usual, he motioned for her to get up and have another go at him, standing back and holding his staff loosely, waiting until she was up and ready again. Rey gritted her teeth and slammed her fist into the dirt, all she wanted was to wipe that smug look off his face. Kylo was a patient teacher, but he couldn't help giving off a sense of superior self-satisfaction; he enjoyed being the more skilled combatant, and it made him insufferable.

Rey hopped lightly to her feet, and gave her staff a few twirls before turning her attention on her opponent, sizing him up so she could take him down. Raising her weapon, she advanced on Kylo, throwing a few experimental jabs, which were easily deflected; they circled each other, feeling out the body language of the other, neither taking the offensive just yet. "Kylo," Rey asked, breaking the heavy silence "You said the essence of our power is in our bodily fluids, is that true for blood too?" He nodded, keeping his guard up and not breaking eye contact "Your powers are unique in that they lie in and exchange based on your arousal, but for the majority of magic users, ours is the most concentrated in our blood." She grinned, making a quick swipe at his head, which he dodged swiftly "You seem to enjoy sampling my power with your mouth, could I take in yours with your blood?"

His gaze grew more serious and he swung his staff in a downward arc, forcing her to be quick on her feet as she spun out of the way "Yes, you could. There are some witches and warlocks who do take the power of others by drinking their blood, or use it to infuse their rituals with greater power by using it, but that is a dangerous practice and is forbidden in all honorable covens." Rey frowned curiously "What's wrong with taking a little blood? Provided it's given willingly, and you don't take too much." He caught the foot she used to aim a sideways kick at his ribs and threw it backward, forcing her to perform an awkward head-over-tail summersault "That's the thing though," he explained "blood magic is incredibly powerful, but you can never just do it once; for someone who uses blood to amplify their own power, it's instantly addicting. It becomes a deep hunger that is only briefly sated with the consumption of magical blood; you become an animal whose sole purpose is the pursuit of more."

Kylo had become so invested in impressing Rey with the seriousness of what she was asking, that he'd stopped his keen scrutiny of her every movement. Rey saw her chance and seized it. She threw a quick jab at his chest, snapping him back to the present and forcing him to throw up his staff to block the blow; he returned her strike, as she knew he would, with one of his own, aiming at her head. Rey feinted to the side and raised her own staff at an angle, deflecting his blow, but not stopping its path, causing him to surge past her. Rey leapt forward as the path of Kylo's glancing blow traveled past her, and whipped her tail in a circular motion, down onto his staff. Doing so added to his momentum in a way that he didn't anticipate, and it caused him to stumble slightly. That was all she needed, and, as she flew past him, she struck out behind her, dealing him a smart blow to the kidney.

The resulting groan told Rey that her shot had been true, and she pulled up short, spinning around to survey her handiwork. Kylo had let his staff fall to the ground and was leaning backwards, his hands on either side of his lower back, with one rubbing the offended area. Rey choked back a giggle; she had finally fulfilled the conditions he had required of her, and now he had to hold up his end and take her out into the forest to hunt something. She apparently hadn't stifled her laughter well enough, because he turned and fixed her with a scowl "Oh it's funny to you, is it?" his annoyed tone almost completely hiding his slight amusement. Rey was now laughing openly as she nodded vigorously "You look like such an old man when you rub your back like that!" the mental imagery was seemingly overwhelming as she dissolved into helpless peals of laughter after she said it, sliding to the ground and weakly kicking her legs.

Her amusement caught on, and Kylo was soon smiling begrudgingly, but that only reinforced Rey's claim that he reminded her of a grumpy old man, and she was soon a useless pile of giggles that made no attempt to help him put away their gear for the day. He ended up throwing her over his shoulder and hauling her back home, that way; surprisingly, she made no protest and was quite peaceful the whole way, apart from a spasm of laughter here and there.

When they got back to Kylo's cave, he laid her down on one the log bench, and went about putting their gear away. Rey lay there watching him as he moved about, putting everything in its proper place. A wave of fondness and affectionate feelings washed over her as she observed this strange man who she'd grown so close to in such a short period of time. She found that even though he clearly had some past trauma that he did his best to hide under a mask of arrogance and cold indifference that sometimes bordered on harshness, he still had a kindness to him that drew her in; he'd made an effort to be more open with her and to make her feel safe, and for that, she genuinely cared for him.

When he returned to her, Rey stretched out her arms to him, her eyes dark and her smile inviting "Please?" was all she said. Kylo had bent down when he reached her, and smoothed a tendril of hair out of her face "Please what, Rey?" She flushed deeply, averting her eyes in embarrassment, not wanting to say the exact words "We haven't since before you started teaching me to defend myself. Kylo, it's been so long, _please_?" He smiled, a low chuckle rumbling deeply in his chest "My little Rey has an appetite after all, does she?" her color deepened, but she mustered her courage and reached out, entwining her fingers in his hair and pulling him down until their foreheads touched "Kylo, it's been too long. Make me yours, _now_." His eyes widened and swept her into his arms with one movement, crushing her lips to his; as he did so, she could tell by his heavy breathing that he was longing for this just as much as she was, the realization making her smile against his lips.

That smile was soon replaced by short gasps as Kylo pushed her against the outside wall of the cave, kicked her legs apart, and shoved his hand into her breeches, stroking his fingers through her building arousal. Rey wrapped her arms around his neck as tightly as she could, arching her back against the stone for support as her lover plunged his fingers into her heat, eliciting tortured whimpers from her rosy lips. She was soon rolling her hips against the hardness growing beneath his robes, begging him to join their bodies "Just let me finish you" he whispered raggedly into her ear, and doubling his efforts in the process "No, I want you inside me, _now_ " she demanded as best she could, not wanting to let him know how close she was to coming apart. With a strained growl, he freed his cock from its constraints and yanked down her breeches before hoisting her up, wrapping her legs around his waist; he stared into her eyes before kissing her deeply for several moments. Then, as if in concert, he breached her with both his tongue and his cock, swallowing her surprised yelp at the sudden intrusion.

Rey did her best to catch her breath, but she didn't get the chance, as Kylo was instantly filling her up with thrust after thrust; one powerful arm was wrapped around her hips and pulled her in harder with each plunge of his cock, the other arm crushed her to him with a vice-like grip while his mouth was busy marking her neck. Rey thought back to the night she had seen him gripping his manhood while he lost himself to some dream, her name on his lips; the memory made it dawn on her that the way he was fiercely gripping her body right then, reminded her of the way he had taken his cock in hand and turned it to his purpose. The idea that Kylo was using her body as a tool with which to gain his pleasure washed over Rey like a drenching wave, and went straight to her sex, making her clench around him and go rigid, throwing her head back, her mouth falling open in a silent cry of ecstasy as each wave hit her. He stared at her in awe before speeding up the motions of his hips, lasting several more minutes before giving one last powerful thrust and pressing himself as deep inside her as he could, his cum pumping into her in hot streams. He was so consumed in his passion that he almost forgot his spell to counter the heat they generated together, and hurriedly blurted it out, his hand placed urgently over her belly until it served its purpose and they both fell silent.

When Kylo finally let her slip to the ground, they were both spent and stood there leaning against the rock and breathing heavily for several minutes before either of them could move to do or say anything else. Kylo moved first, lifting Rey's shift over her head and tugging at the buns in her hair "Come on, little one, let's get cleaned up.

Once they were done bathing, Kylo carried Rey to the cave, as was his habit after every bath. As they passed through the low doorway, he lit a fire with a wave of his hand and, instead of tumbling Rey onto the bed like he loved to do, he summoned a blanket and several pillows from the bed and laid them on the stone hearth in front of the fire, proceeding to set Rey down comfortably amongst them. He then went and donned some knee length breeches, not unlike her own, and moved to where he kept his potions and concoctions, selecting various tools and bottles before returning to sit down behind her. "What are you doing?" she asked, watching him with a certain amount of amusement and curiosity "I'm taking you out on your first hunt tomorrow, remember? The one you wanted so badly and finally won today?" She beamed at him "Of course I remember! But what it all this for?" he kept his eyes on his work as he took drops from an array of different bottles, dripping them onto a palette of sorts and mixing them with small brushes, never using the same brush for more than one mixture "Well, I can't plan for everything we might run into out there. I've placed wards around a small circumference of the cave and our training area, but beyond that, I can't predict what kinds of creatures we could encounter beyond them. This is just some extra assurance for your safety."

Seeming to be satisfied with his work, Kylo set it down and turned to Rey. Turning her so she faced away from him, he drew her robe down around her waist, and carefully tied her hair up and out of the way. "This might be cold" he warned her, but she still shivered a bit when she felt something cool and wet slide across her skin in a large circular motion that took up a large portion of her upper back. "Mind explaining what you're doing, as you've already said why?" she asked teasingly. Kylo's voice responded in a tone that told her he was focused on his task, though it was somewhat hindered by the brush he held between his teeth. "Protection runes can be very powerful when done correctly, I want to make sure you're in no real danger when we venture out tomorrow. This will help a lot with that." He seemed so concentrated on his work, that Rey decided not to try to get him to explain any more for the moment; she carefully picked up a pillow, doing her best not to move in a way that would ruin Kylo's work, and hugged it to her chest, letting her head rest against it.

The next thing Rey knew, Kylo's voice was gently calling to her "Rey. Rey, I'm finished, let's get you up." She took his hand and let him help her up, turning toward him once she was on her feet and resting her head against his chest. He took her face in his hands and turned it up toward him "Rey, look at me for a moment" she lazily opened her eyes and gazed up at him, an adoring smile, no doubt a result of her dozing, beaming up at him. He turned her face to one side and then the other "How is your vision now that you've been here a while? Would you say it's better or worse with the lack of sunlight?" She wrinkled her nose, trying to think about what he was asking "Well, it was kind of hard to get used to for a while. At first my depth perception was a little hazy, but now I can see just fine since you've mentioned it. Why?" He simply laughed and kissed her forehead "I'm only making sure you aren't going cross-eyed from spending so much time in the dark. You are a creature of sunlight, after all. Now come, you need your rest for tomorrow."


	12. Chapter 12

Rey needed no rousing the next morning. She was up and dressed a full hour before they even needed to be awake, and sat cross legged on her side of the bed, staring at Kylo as he slept, as if doing so would draw him into wakefulness. Rey knew full well that he was a remarkably heavy sleeper, and was quite unenthusiastic about being woken before he needed to be. She'd tried once before, but he responded by growling like a bear, grabbing her by the arm, and dragging her back into bed, where he'd held her tight and half laid on her, immobilizing her until he was ready to get up. This time, she made sure she was out of range of his considerable reach, and sat there, trying to figure out how she would spend the remaining time until he got up and readied himself. Sitting in her cross legged position, Rey though back to what it was like when her mother woke her up in the morning. Rey had also been difficult to rouse when she was small; all the other children were eager to get up and attack the day, but Rey was a drowsy child, preferring to remain submerged in her dreams over crawling out into the blinding sunlight.

Nara found that her daughter responded the most favorably when she sang her awake, starting off with softer evening ballads, and then building to cheerful work songs that made it impossible for Rey to not want to get up and dance. She now recalled one of the more quiet songs, a favorite of hers that told the story of a faun who lost a horn and went to a wood nymph, seeking to restore it. She began humming the song quietly to herself, closing her eyes and thinking back to the last time it was sung to her, remembering how her mother would stroke her hair and laugh when Rey tried to burrow herself deeper in her bedclothes. Lost in her nostalgia, Rey sat there, happily swaying back and forth until she noticed the absence of Kylo's deep, even breathing. Opening her eyes, she saw him, face mostly buried in his pillow, one eye sleepily staring at her between locks of his unruly hair.

Reaching out, she tousled his hair a bit "Oh, have I woken you, love? I didn't mean to." she said, a laughingly apologetic tone to her voice. He responded with a groan that was more amused than it was annoyed "You just couldn't wait any longer could you?" he asked, laughing and stretching his arms out above his head "Well you are awake now," Rey prodded "might as well get up?" He responded by balling up his pillow and launching it at her head, striking her square in the face and almost knocking her onto the floor behind. Rey squeaked in surprise, but she caught the pillow as it made contact, and righted herself before lunging at him and buffeting him about the head with it, as she voiced her displeasure. Kylo caught her around the waist as she attacked him and quickly flipped her onto her back, tickling her and yanking up her tunic to blow raspberries on her belly.

Rey's irritated scolding soon turned to shrieks of laughter as she wriggled around, trying to get away from his assault; Kylo was soon laying kisses wherever he found bare skin, drawing little gasps from Rey until he was running his fingers under the waist of her breaches, fully intending to disrobe and devour her right then and there. Rey, realizing his intention, jerked herself free and rolled off the edge of the bed, landing in a crouching position, yelling as she went "No! No, no, noooo! You promised me a hunt today; I'm ready and you're not going to distract me like that, get up!" Kylo let out a frustrated growl, and reached out in a swiping motion, trying to grab her, but she evaded him, dashing to where he kept his clothing and snatched up a pair of his breeches, a tunic and belt, before hurling each piece at him one by one "I'll be outside when you're ready" she said and stomped off.

Kylo soon emerged from the cave, dressed and in seemingly good spirits, his boots draped over one arm; seeing Rey sitting by the fire pit, coaxing a flame to life, he sat down next to her to put them on "You're skilled at that, but I need to teach you how to light the fire with your magic. It's one of the most useful tools you will have at your disposal." she nodded, still focused on the task in front of her "You sure I'll be able to do that?" he smiled, pulling the laces on one boot tight and tying it off "You've shown you can produce energy without a problem, all I really need to do is show you how to manipulate that energy into heat, and you'll be lighting everything on fire in no time." Rey leaned back on her heels, admiring her handiwork as the flames blazed up enthusiastically "Fire can wait, tell me about our hunt today." Kylo finished fastening his boots and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, "We'll head to the north, goblins congregate in small groups there; they are ferocious creatures, but small and easy to put down. They might at first seem like nothing more than simple mischievous creatures, they mostly just loot and vandalize, but given the chance, they'll murder any other creature in cold blood just for the fun of it." Seeing Rey's questioning expression, he continued "You seem like a tender hearted person, Rey, I just want to make sure that you don't hesitate when the time comes. We'll go after you get something to eat."

After they had eaten, Kylo took Rey to where he kept their training tools, and instead of handing her the plain staff she usually trained with, he handed her a different one. This new staff had long, slightly curved blades affixed to each end. She took the weapon and weighed it in her hands, giving it a few spins to test its balance. Grinning widely, she turned to him in excitement "What's the occasion?" He had gotten out his own staff and was taking it out of its protective wrappings "I can't have you going out to fight beasts with a plain wooden staff now, can I? That's just irresponsible." Rey ran her fingers over the designs etched into the haft "Where did you get this?" she asked wonderingly. Kylo smiled, a faraway look in his eyes "I told you that I'd seen battles and war...to be honest, I loved it; the chaos, the savagery. I've collected numerous weapons over the years that remind me of those times. This is merely one of them." Rey frowned at his words "You liked it? War is evil, Kylo. Killing and destruction is horrifying, no one should enjoy that."

His gaze came back to her "That's what they tell you, the peaceful, quiet folk. They decry warfare as madness, call it an unnecessary evil, when the truth is that, for some of us, it is the only outlet for the passion and fury welling up inside our souls; the howling becomes too great, and there is no relief beyond violence. That violence can either be turned outward and released in a way that has purpose, or internalized and inflicted on the one who bears it. The second option never lasts for very long, and that's how you end up with someone snapping in a moment and slaughtering their entire family. I won't say that such occurrences are beyond the control of the person who commits them, or that it's any excuse, but that aggression cannot be bottled up. Some of us are born with that spirit raging inside of us, while others acquire it through trauma and abuse." He handed her a cross-body holster for the weapon "Here, put this on."

Shouldering her weapon, Rey followed along silently behind Kylo, carefully considering what he had just said to her. She had a lot to occupy her mind as they made their way through the forest; she wondered what it could be like to have this internal rage burning inside her the way he had described. She'd always felt calm and even tempered, never flying into a temper as a child; she was the one who approached difficult situations reasonably and rationally and couldn't remember ever having an impulse to act violently. Even when she'd attacked him the first time they met in the forest, and that felt like a life time ago, it had been in self defense, and she only remembered feeling fear and a strange pressure growing deep inside her. If she was being honest with herself, Rey couldn't even say for sure why she wanted to go on this hunt. She'd never killed anything before in her life, and she didn't understand what made her want to now. _"It must be that I want to prove to Kylo that I can take care of myself, and I've learned what he's taught me well so far."_ She felt a poking sensation of annoyance at the thought of wanting to please him, but quickly dismissed the idea altogether _"I'm not doing this for him, I'm doing it for me. I CAN survive on my own without the approval of the elders who aren't even my people. Someday they'll see how wrong they were."_ She thought to herself as she walked along.

Stealing sideways glances at him as they walked, she wondered what Kylo was like in the height of a blood rage. Was he a mindless killing machine who couldn't distinguish friend from foe, or was there a deadly purpose in his actions? Did he become a force of destruction that acted with searing precision? She knew what he was like when pursuing other passionate impulses, so she had no doubt that it was a sight to behold. The image of him standing in the middle of a scorched battlefield with felled enemies piled at his feet made Rey uncomfortable; not because she was afraid of him, but because she didn't like the fact that it made her want to press her thighs together. She shook off the feeling, trying to focus on the mission at hand. Those feelings could wait, she might be fighting for her life at any point she told herself. Still, the task in front of her didn't stop images of her lover, covered in dirt, sweat and the blood of his enemies, his eyes still alight with the thrill of slaughter, throwing her to the ground and sating his passion with her body, from springing unbidden into her mind's eye. This was going to be a long day.

They had been traveling along for a while, and Rey noticed that they were coming upon a grassy clearing. The trees were thinner there, letting more light through than the denser patches of forest, and she could clearly make out a dusky meadow peppered with small white flowers. As they grew close, Kylo held up his hand, silently indicating to her to slow down; coming to a halt, he crouched low, Rey following his lead without question. He leaned close to her, and, bringing his mouth to her ear, whispered "There is a small group of four goblins on the far edge of the meadow just ahead; they're easy prey, but they can pose a problem if they catch you coming before you can strike. I'm going to let you take care of them on your own, while I hang back to provide support if you need it, though I doubt you will." He gripped her shoulder confidently "Whenever you're ready, Rey."


	13. Chapter 13

Rey crept softly around the edge of the meadow, gripping her staff tightly on one hand and parting the tall grass in front of her with the other as she went, Kylo remaining behind to observe; he had chosen to give her the lead on her first hunt, reasoning that she would be fine, and he could offer advice once he had seen her in action. He failed to mention that the mere idea of watching her kill something had set his blood simmering ever since he began teaching her how to fight, and he now took a fierce joy in the anticipation of seeing that vision made flesh, smiling to himself as he watched her stalk her prey.

Reaching a vantage point where she could get a clearer view of her intended targets, Rey crouched low in the foliage to plan her attack. She spied the small troop of goblins not farther than fifty paces away; they seemed to be squabbling over the carcass of a rabbit and were not particularly aware of their surroundings. They were hideous things, the goblins; standing about a yard in height with grey, leathery skin clinging loosely to their bones, and their bright, flashing eyes skittering around mean-spiritedly. As Rey strained to get a better look, she noticed a slight haze surrounding and illuminating her prey; almost like a second sight was making it so she could observe them more clearly. She'd noticed it one or two times before when she had been trying to focus on an object in the dense darkness of the forest; it was as if some strange lavender light was cast around the object she had chosen to turn her attention on. It seemed stronger this time, and after rubbing her eyes a few times to no effect, she dismissed it as a side effect of going so long without strong sunlight.

Rey decided to make her move while the goblins were distracted, stealing through the tall grass until she was almost on top of them; she deduced that scattering them would give her the greatest advantage, and with her mind made up, she launched herself from her hiding place, landing right smack in the midst of them. The surprise attack had its intended effect, and the ones that weren't sent sprawling ears over tail, simply stood, rooted to the ground, gaping widely at Rey as she stood among them. The shock didn't last forever, though; as the goblins were regaining their faculties, Rey set about mowing them down. Kylo's words came back to her, and she attacked without hesitation, slaughtering each of her foes mercilessly, and soaking the ground with goblin blood. One or two of them landed hits on her, but the protection glyph Kylo had painted on her back did its job wonderfully, as each blow merely glanced off her harmlessly.

Turning her attention to the last two goblins, she dispatched one quickly, beheading it with a single powerful stroke; then, as she rounded on the other, was knocked flat on her back in a marshy puddle, stunned by a small but unexpected shockwave. The next few moments seemed to drag on as though time had slowed to a fraction of its normal pace, despite the fact that it all happened in a matter of seconds. Though her senses were overwhelmed for a moment, Rey fought her way back and caught site of the remaining goblin; it was standing there gnashing its teeth and shrieking in rage, in one of its uplifted hands, it held a stone with a glowing rune on it, while the other carried a curved dagger that it was menacing her with. As she lay there struggling to regain mastery of her faculties, Rey faintly heard Kylo's voice through the dull ringing in her ears; he seemed to be screaming a warning, but she couldn't make it out. All she knew was that she had to kill the goblin immediately and at all costs.

Searching desperately for her staff, Rey spied it laying a small distance away where she had stood when she was struck down, out of reach but clearly visible, and blocked by an enraged goblin. There was no way she could get around the creature to retrieve her weapon, and she had to act quickly; she had finally been able to figure out what Kylo had been screaming to her "THE STONE! REY! GET THE STONE!". She knew that she'd never be able to retrieve her weapon AND take the stone from the goblin, and she was beginning to panic, when her training with Kylo came flooding back to her. She had spent so many of her recent days practicing hand to hand fighting, that she had pushed their other training to the back of her mind; it was farther than she had ever done before, but there was no other way. Reaching out with her power, Rey seized her bladed staff and called it to her, passing it straight through the goblin's chest and sending it thudding into the ground beside her.

Too late. Rey didn't realize it, but she hadn't acted fast enough, and the goblin had hurled the runestone against a boulder, shattering it just before her blade snuffed out its life, releasing the spell stored inside of it. The whole event had taken place in the blink of an eye, and Kylo barely had time to scream a warning to Rey as he jumped to his feet to come thundering through the forest to her side. He had hardly made it ten paces before a shrieking howl ripped through the air, causing both of them to clap their hands over their ears at the pain it inflicted.

As soon as she was able, Rey scrambled to her feet, brandishing her weapon and whirling every which way, looking for the source of the terrible noise. A heavy, rhythmic thudding sound indicated the approach of some massive creature, and, seconds later, a monster unlike anything Rey had ever witnessed before came tearing through the trees heading straight for her. Its basic physical makeup was that of a lion, with the ruff of fur around its neck, and the body of a big cat, claws and fangs included, but this creature also had leathery wings and the tail of a scorpion, segmented in hard black shell and ending in a cruelly curved barb that dripped venom.

Kylo was still a good distance away when the thing reached Rey and he roared out as he sprinted towards her "IT'S A MANTICORE, REY! DO NOT LET IT STING YOU! I'M COMING!" Rey had no intention of letting the creature sting her with its barb, but it was already on top of her; she dodged the beast's first few lunges, whirling to one side, and blocking several more with her staff before it let out another howl and swiped a paw, claws extended, at her as she rolled to one side in order to avoid another lunge of its stinger. The paw caught Rey a glancing blow, not fatal, but giving her a taste of its claws as they tore deeply across her shoulder and into her side. At that same moment Rey was hitting the ground, from both the pain and inertia of the blow, she heard another roar, human this time, and a crackling beam of red light arced across her vision as she lay there, hitting the manticore on the broad side of its shoulder, and blasting it into the trunk of a great tree.

Rey felt herself going into shock; her limbs were already going cold when Kylo reached her. As the pain rolled over her in continuous waves, she could hear Kylo's panicked voice "Rey, stay with me! I'm going to get you home, just please, stay awake!" This roused her, and she fought to keep her head above the haze her body was creating as it tried to shut down. She managed to remain coherent and aware of her physical body, but she was losing touch with her surroundings. She felt herself being borne along at breakneck speeds through the forest, though she felt no arms encircling her. Every now and then she had a lucid moment, and looking around during one such time, found herself wrapped in Kylo's cloak, nestled on the back of a huge black wolf as it bounded over rocks and fallen trees on its urgent mission to get her to safety.

When they reached the cave, Kylo let her slide gently to the ground as he transformed back into his normal self, not even bothering to put on clothes as he began tearing through his supply of potions, remedies, and salves in search of anything that might help Rey. He eventually found what he was looking for, and gently picked Rey up and carried her to the bed, laying her on her unaffected side to give himself the most access to her wound. Yanking the cork from a bottle of wine, Kylo held it to Rey's lips "This is going to hurt, so please take this to bite down on." He waited for her to nod in acknowledgement, and then moved back a bit before holding up his hand outstretched, hovering above the wound; Rey, her eyes screwed shut, wondered what he was planning to do for a moment, before she felt a growing heat flowing from Kylo's hand, on to her skin where the manticore's claws had torn her skin. The heat grew until she was practically screaming, begging him to stop, collapsing from the pain and exhaustion when he finally did. Kylo leaned his forehead against Rey's stomach "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, but it was all I knew how to do in that kind of critical moment." He lifted his head and began making a poultice to put over her blistered skin, being as tender and careful as he could, and chilling the mixture slightly with his elemental magic as he applied it, to make it as soothing as possible "I have no healing magic, but I'll do everything I can to minimize your pain and scarring."

Rey managed to turn her head to look at the affected area, and saw that her skin was red and raised all around her wounds, realizing that they were completely cauterized. She reached down and ran a few fingers through Kylo's hair, whispering "You're doing everything you can, my love. You saved my life, I couldn't ask for more." She caught his eye at that moment, and saw that he was at the brink of a complete breakdown as his lower lip trembled slightly, even though his jaw was clenched tightly. She reached out and grasped his chin, turning it to make him look up at her "I'm fine, please don't-" "But you almost weren't fine!" he burst out "You could have died! When I track down that fucking manticore..." his free hand balled into a fist as he left his threat unuttered "No." It was Rey's turn to interrupt. You're not going to do anything to it." He looked up at her quizzically, about to protest before she laid a finger over his lips "You're going to get me all healed up, and then teach me to be even better until I can track it down and slaughter it myself."

Kylo's eyes glowed at her as she said it "You were amazing out there," he finally said, when he could steady his voice "you never faltered once, I couldn't have done better myself." Rey let out a raspy chuckle "You wouldn't have let yourself get knocked down so easily, and you definitely would have been able to keep that goblin from activating the stone's spell." He shook his head and stood up, walking to where he kept his clothes and pulling on a pair of his very thin sleeping trousers before returning to his former position, kneeling on the floor at Rey's side "There was no way you could have seen that coming. Goblins use weapons and limited magic, but I've never seen one use something like a summoning stone before. I didn't think they so much as possessed the intelligence to comprehend how to use one."

Rey propped herself up on one arm "One thing has me curious; several of them landed pretty solid hits on me, but they did nothing. I'm guessing I have your protection rune to thank for that, but why didn't it at least lessen the damage when the manticore clawed me?" Kylo frowned in response "You're right, it should have." he leaned over her and removed the scraps of leather and cloth that remained of her tunic and jerkin, inspecting his work "It's partially smudged away, it must have been the wet ground you fell onto when you were stunned." He thought for a moment before continuing "Rey...how would you feel if that protection glyph was more...permanent?" Rey shifted her weight a bit and tucked her lower arm under her head, her free hand going back up to twirl her fingers in his hair "What do you mean by 'more permanent'? Are you planning to brand me?" she joked with a quiet laugh. Kylo pulled her hand from his hair and held it in one of his own, drawing gentle circles on her palm with the index finger of his other hand "I could etch it in your skin with ink and needles, tattoo it on, but a better version this time. It won't make you indestructible, but it would make you less vulnerable to many kinds of magic and physical harm. And it wouldn't wash off at the most inconvenient time."

Rey couldn't help but smile; Kylo was so earnest in his desire to protect her, and so uncharacteristically soft-mannered, and it warmed her heart to the core. Neither of them had said "I love you." though Rey liked to call him "love" and they both knew that they had developed strong attachments to each other. His actions said everything he hadn't verbalized, and it was enough for her. She squeezed his hand affectionately "If this is such a great idea, why don't you have any? Aside from a few scars, your skin is perfectly bare." Kylo shrugged "Tattooing protection is rare; we all have unique needs, and these runes and glyphs need to be specifically drawn for their bearers, and you have to have a strong bond with the writer. They need to know your strengths and weaknesses in order for the design to be accurate, and I've never really had anyone who fits that description. Until now." Rey cradled his face in her hands and drew him close, kissing him softly "One more thing you'll have to teach me, I'm afraid; I don't know that I'm much of an artist. Now come here and hold me, I won't be able to sleep until you do."

Shout out to Different2019 for lending a hand with some of the details in this chapter!


	14. Chapter 14

Rey slept fitfully; the pain from her injury had made sure that she couldn't really settle in and get comfortable. Her discomfort seemed to pass to Kylo as well, and he did his own share of tossing and turning, though he slept deeply throughout, meaning Rey suffered sleeplessness for the both of them. Cautiously, she removed Kylo's hand from where it rested on her hip, and eased herself up and off the bed, taking care not to wake the slumbering man behind her. The cool stone of the cave floor felt soothing on her tired feet, and she paced the length of the room back and forth, laying a hand lightly on her injured side, flexing her torso from side to side, trying to stretch out her aching muscles. Wrapping a blanket around her bare shoulders, Rey wandered over to where Kylo had left his potion tools and ingredients carelessly strewn on the chest that stood at the foot of the bed, and picked up the untouched bottle of wine that he had uncorked in order to give her a mouth guard. Never having tasted wine, or alcohol of any kind for that matter, Rey gave the beverage a sniff, and, after a wrinkle of her nose, took a hesitant sip. Finding that the stuff wasn't completely awful, she settled herself down on the hearth in front of the still-crackling fire, and made herself comfortable, taking occasional sips from the bottle and staring into the flames.

Falling into a reverie, Rey let her thoughts drift, wondering when she would be able to control such flames at a whim like Kylo did. As she let her gaze linger on the flames, they slowly started to take on that same light blue/lavender hue that had illuminated the goblins she had faced hours before. She was in a peaceful environment this time, and so could take the time to explore this phenomenon; as she stared more deeply into the fire, Rey found that the longer she did so, the more it seemed that the light beckoned to her. Feeling curious, and not afraid in the least, she let herself slowly lean in to the sensation, the act seeming like the most natural thing in the world. The light had taken over the fire completely by that time, seeming to slow down time itself as the opalescent flames flickered and swayed rhythmically, steadily drawing Rey in, to where she didn't know. In the background of her mind, she had been slowly realizing that she was coming closer and closer to the heart of the fire; a realization that strangely brought her no panicked or fearful feelings, but only made her want to continue, if for no other reason than to find out where it would lead.

Rey finally had a moment of lucidity, and became aware of the fact that she was indeed settled right in the midst of the blaze; looking around, she was mildly shocked to see her body, still sitting in her place on the hearth, the bottle in her hand and a longing, distant look in her eyes. By that time, Rey surmised that it was some element of her mysterious magical talent that was at the root of the event, and that its nature as a part of her was keeping away any impulse to panic. Without much of a thought as to what she was doing, Rey impulsively reached out toward her own face, and in doing so, caught sight of her own hand, finding that she was now a glowing spirit-like version of herself, made up of the same light that had taken over the fire.

Being removed from her corporeal form was strange; she was now essentially weightless, which meant that her proprioception was virtually nonexistent, and she had almost no sense of where her limbs were in relation to each other. She no longer had to think about ordering her hand to lift and touch the cheek of her physical body, she merely though "cheek" and her spirit hand was there. She wasn't even sure it that really _was_ her hand, she could feel no weight of it or resistance to it, only a slight tingle somewhere in her soul when she saw her spirit fingers caress the face of the body she had just vacated. As the two halves of her person came into contact, a wave of nostalgic emotions flowed over her, in both feeling and imagery; she saw all the brightest moments of her life come tumbling out one after another: frolicking in meadows with her mother and sisters; trying to reach the bottom of a glacier fed lake high in the mountains that she had visited with the fauns one spring; sitting around autumn fires with the other young fauns, eating apples with honey while the adults told them stories. And then there was Kylo, dimming his predatory eyes, and baring his soul to her; the look on his face as he gathered her up to race home with her after the attack. These were very new memories, but they shone just as brightly as the others along the thread of her life.

Drawing back, Rey let her spirit body drift up and out of the fire, hovering above the floor for a few moments before spying her lover, moving in his fitful sleep, and then floating over to the bed, and coming to a stop right above him, just inches from his face as he stirred. She wondered what troubled his sleep; his nocturnal disturbances had grown rare since she had been with him, though he never acknowledged their existence or cause, and she hadn't asked, figuring that it was something of deep impact in his life, and he would tell her when he was ready.

It was never Rey's intention to violate his privacy; he seemed so troubled, and to be experiencing such stress during his sleep, that she impulsively reached out to lay a hand on his forehead, and was completely unprepared for what she saw. The very instant her hand came in contact with Kylo's face, Rey was yanked from her calm, happy state of mind, and plunged into a world of fire; the first thing she saw was a mountain range, its peaks rising high into the sky, with a single spire towering above all the others, and piercing the clouds in its great height. Rivers of lava and flame surrounded the mountains, burning fiercely but making no mark on their banks, while billows of smoke passed by; Rey could feel the heat on her face even though, from her viewpoint, she was what felt like thousands of feet above it all.

Curious, she willed herself closer, and found that in doing so, she began circling down, like a bird looking to land; she even felt the wind buffeting hot and dry against her face as she went, getting hotter and hotter as she descended and beginning to chap her lips. Continuing her journey downward, and passed through a cloud of smoke, Rey spied a dark figure standing at the edge of the highest precipice; it was yet too far to detect any familiar characteristics, but she felt undeniably drawn to it with an almost desperate urgency. She finally reached an altitude that allowed her a better look, and she found that the figure was that of a man clad in long black robes, his hair falling over his eyes, leaving his entire face in shadow. The man stood rigidly, in a way that reminded Rey of statues she'd seen along roads frequented by humans, but he seemed very much alive, it was just as if time had been halted and he was simply waiting for it to flow once again.

Rey's first impulse was to assume this man was Kylo; his figure was tall and powerfully built, he was carrying a staff identical to the one her lover wielded, and it was Kylo's mind she had just touched after all. The one thing Rey took the most notice of, was that this man wore a crown on his head; it was fashioned out of a black metal that strongly resembled the metal of his staff, and it twisted about his head in a sinister pattern, growing into cruel-looking points. A glowing red ruby, also like the one mounted on his staff was mounted in the center of the crown above his forehead, reminding her of a strange cyclops. This man could very well be the same man she shared a bond with, but her better senses told her to be cautious; despite the physical similarities, she felt no familiarity with this man whatsoever. She would have expected to feel some semblance of warmth or attachment, but felt nothing but a yawning void of uncertainty when she looked at him.

By this time, Rey had halted her descent and was hovering at eye level with the man, though his hair still obstructed his gaze, preventing her from getting a good look at him. As she floated there in space wondering what this strange vision could mean, the strange man's hand shot out and gripped her by her upper arm "Rey!" he uttered her name in a commanding and possessive tone, making as if to draw her to himself. At that moment, his face also became visible, making Rey catch her breath; it was Kylo's face to be sure, but soul beneath it was alien to her. His face had twisted into a snarl as he spoke her name, but what struck her the most were his eyes. While his usual glowing green eyes unnerved her, the eyes staring out of that wrathful face terrified her; these eyes were a deep blood red with a yellow ring around the irises. She could almost feel the heat emanating from his eyes, and they even seemed to be burning him, too, by the way they strained from his face, the dark circles set underneath them making them appear more fierce than she had ever seen in real life.

Responding instantly, Rey wrenched her arm out of his grasp desperately, breaking their connection and propelling her a small distance away from him. There was only time for a single last glance at his face before Rey felt herself being pulled from the vision. It was like she was being sucked into the sky as she hurtled upward, unsure of what was going to happen next, but positive that she was increasing in speed by the second as she continued her ascent. In the very next moment, Rey found herself back in her body in front of the fire, slightly out of breath, but no longer distressed like she was just not long before; it was so sudden, that the shock made her almost fling the bottle of wine that was still in her hand across the room, but she got hold of herself just in time, and only jerked a bit, making it slosh around in the bottle. As the same time, she heard a grunting gasp behind her, and turning her head, she saw Kylo sitting bolt upright on the bed, staring wildly "Rey, are you alright? I just had the strangest dream."

Rey gave him a small smile, motioning for him to lay down again "I'm fine, my love. Go back to sleep." He swung his legs off the side of the bed and sat there rubbing the heel of his hand over an eye before getting up and walking over to where she sat and sprawling out on the rug next to her, a hand draped lightly on her knee "You should be resting, why are you up? Did something happen?" She nodded, bringing the bottle to her lips once again "I think my power is growing. Or I'm discovering more of what I can do. Either way, I've had an interesting night." He rolled over to his side, facing her and propping his head up on one hand, reaching for the bottle as she lowered it "Tell me about it." He said, taking a long drink. Pulling her blanket up around her shoulders, Rey sought for the right words to express herself "I don't...I don't know that I'm ready to talk about it. It scared me and I feel that if I do, I'll be speaking something into existence that feels too terrible to comprehend."

Kylo peered down into the bottle that he held loosely in his fingertips, frowning slightly "You know that I can't help you if I don't know what's bothering you, Rey." She nodded, making as if to try to explain herself further, but he held up a finger to stop her "That being said, I trust you to know how to deal with your own power, and I want you to feel comfortable confiding in me. I won't rush you, but I hope you know that I'm completely invested in this journey you're on to discover your power. I hope you believe that." Rey smiled down at him "Thank you, Kylo. It's not that I don't want to tell you. I just need a little time to consider what it means, that's all." She was feeling slightly giddy by that point, the wine having more of an impact than she had anticipated. "My head is feeling a little cloudy," she said sleepily, leaning in to kiss him and almost missing his lips "Could you help me back to bed?" He grinned at her, climbing to his feet "Can't hold your wine, eh?" and then, his eyes widening, a look of realization and mischief coming over them "You've never been drunk, have you, Rey?" She shook her head, a wide but sleepy grin spanning her face "Whew" he whistled "That's going to have to be something we work on when you're better. But for now," he swept her up in his arms, carrying her bridal-style back to the bed "You need to heal up from that wound of yours." And after placing her gently down and climbing in behind her, an arm slung over her waist "No getting up this time, you hear me?" All he got in return was an incoherent mumble, but it was enough, and he turned to slumber, too, this time undisturbed by strange dreams.


	15. Chapter 15

Rey slept well enough through the night, but when she had rested all she could, she found that her entire body was wretchedly sore from her ordeal the day before. Trying to roll out of bed had resulted in her collapsing on the floor in pain, causing Kylo, dressed in just his breeches and sleeves, to come running when he heard her pained cry, scooping her up in his arms and placing her back on the bed with a gentle scolding "You're going to have to stay in bed for a few days at least, if not a week; you have a serious injury, and you need to realize that and act accordingly." Rey groaned "But I don't want to sleep anymore, I'm not tired, and I don't want to lay around alone all day." He smiled and smoothed her hair out of her face "How is your pain right now?" his comforting smile poorly masking the concern in his voice "It was fine until I decided to get up, and now I can barely move." she said as tears began welling up in her eyes.

Kylo dabbed at her eyes with his sleeve, paused a moment to ponder something, and then turned to her, his face grave "I can give you something for the pain; it won't erase it completely, but it will take the edge off and make you forget how badly it hurts. Is that something you want to do?" Rey nodded eagerly, though she was unsure of why he was so serious about it "Yes, please! I'll take whatever you have to offer." Kylo nodded and got up, leaving the cave. It was only then, as she watched him walk away, that she noticed deep purple bruises spanning his ribs and running down his spine. A strange unexplainable feeling flowed up from Rey's heart and caught in her throat; she had no idea that he'd been injured, and from what she saw, it looked incredibly painful. Clasping a hand over her mouth, she squeezed her eyes shut, fighting off the tears that threatened to spill over as she thought about how selfish she had been, not even thinking to ask if he was alright.

Kylo was gone for a few minutes before coming back with a handful of green pods which he deposited on his work table, and then went about collecting various tools for his purpose. Rey watched curiously as he took each of the pods and made deep scores in it with a nail-like tool; he then let the milky white substance that seeped from the wounds drip onto a mound of dried tea leaves, using his magic to apply heat and dry the mixture out entirely. Pouring the leaves into tea bags, he placed them into two clay cups and poured steaming hot water over them, letting them steep for a bit, and bringing them over to the bed where Rey sat, propped up with several large pillows.

Holding the cup out to her, but drawing back out of her reach when she went to take it, Kylo looked her in the eye and said solemnly "This is only to help with your pain, it's not to be taken for fun, and by no means should it be taken often. Do you understand?" Rey nodded, and, as he handed her the cup, reached out and grabbed both it and his hand between the two of her own, bringing it to her lips and kissing his fingers, murmuring "Kylo, you never told me you were hurt and I feel horrible for not asking if you were injured; please, tell me what happened." He reddened slightly at the intensity of her concern, passing a hand through his hair after he had set his own cup down "it's really nothing. I've neglected all of my forms other than the snake for so long, my body tends to forget them, and then it's that much harder to do it when I have to. I haven't become the wolf in a very long time, and it punished me for that disrespect." He added the last part with a rueful laugh before picking his cup up again and motioning for Rey to drink hers; "Normally, I wouldn't share this with you, but I'm feeling rather sore myself today."

Sniffing the tea concoction, Rey smelled the earthiness of the of it, along with a sweet muskiness that she didn't recognize, and, taking a sip, she wrinkled up her nose at its bitterness. Kylo laughed at her reaction and then downed his dose in one gulp "Even if you like the taste, it gets old really fast, best to just take the whole thing in one go." he advised. She sighed resignedly, and pinched her nose before tipping the contents of the cup into her mouth and swallowing it down. The bitterness lasted only a few moments, and she soon felt no trace of it left on her tongue, only the herbal flavor of the tea remained. Kylo climbed up on the bed beside her and piled together another few pillows for himself to recline on, and encircled Rey's shoulders with his arm, pulling her in close as he let his head fall back.

"So...What now?" Rey asked, not yet feeling any effects of the tea "Shhhhh" he lifted a finger to his lips "You'll feel it soon enough, just relax." She huffed impatiently, but laid her head on his shoulder and took a deep, slow breath, trying to relax. As her heart rate slowed, her thoughts went back to the night before; she knew that Kylo wanted to know what she had experienced, but she didn't know how he would react to what she had seen when she touched him. The man in her vision had made her feel so afraid; all she felt from him was rage and an unquenchable thirst for power. She wondered if what she saw was a foreshadowing of who he was to become, or if it was a very real part of him lurking deep down inside at that very moment. Rey took another deep breath, noting the strangeness in having to remind herself for some reason; what if she told him and he didn't believe her? Maybe he would brush it off as nothing more than the wine.

Her thoughts floated to another extreme: what if he took her vision _too_ seriously? She remembered their conversation about his love for battle, how his eyes had grown wide and glowed more brightly than usual when he spoke of it. Rey worried that telling him about her experience would make him want to return to that world. Another deep breath. " _No_ ," she thought " _I shouldn't assume his actions, that's unfair. He deserves for me not to have any expectations, that's the least I can do._ " She cringed a little; had she already made her assumptions by not telling him immediately? " _No_ " she thought again " _I wasn't ready to talk about it then, and I'd have probably done a bad job at the time anyway._ "

Pushing those thoughts aside for a moment, Rey rubbed a hand over her eyes, at the same time noticing that Kylo's arm felt heavier than normal; craning her neck to look up at him, she saw that he seemed to be dozing off, his breath coming more shallowly than normal. It was then that she noticed a feeling had come over her that was just like how it felt to have a warm, heavy blanket thrown on her; she felt so blissful that she hardly even noticed the pain that had almost crippled her not long before " _Oh, that's right_ " she thought, feeling the realization dawning on her slowly _"The tea. This must be the effects of whatever was in that drink he gave me."_ Even her eyelids had grown heavy by that time, and she realized that the longer she went without moving, the stronger the effects became; all she wanted to do was sink as deep into the pillows as she could, and sleep forever.

"Hey, you awake?" Rey asked, poking Kylo in the ribs; he groaned a little and pulled her in tighter, going to rest his chin on her head, and jabbing himself on one of her horns in the process "Ow," he rubbed the spot and leaned his head down again, though taking greater care to avoid her horns. "I definitely am now, how are you feeling?" She was now sliding her hand up and down her own thigh, stopping momentarily to consider his question before resuming the motion "Fuzzy. I want to touch everything, but I also want to lay still and never move again. Why do I have to keep reminding myself to take deep breaths?" He let out a soft "Hmph" that she took as a laugh "It's what the tea does; makes you feel all warm and dull. It's nice, but you wouldn't enjoy feeling like this every day." He answered, reaching up to tug gently on one of her hair buns.

Rey had stopped the motions on her leg and moved to drawing circles on his chest with her finger "I feel itchy. But not in a bad way, and not all over; mostly my cheeks and nose and the back of my neck. I didn't know you could feel itchy in a pleasant way…" she trailed off a bit, concentrating on the movements of her finger "I really just want to rub my face on your chest." This time he did laugh, shaking his head at her "Well...you're more than welcome to, if you so desire." he teased. Without hesitating, she pressed her face into his sternum and nuzzled in, enjoying the feel of his soft skin against her face "You're so soft and smooth" she said, her voice muffled against him and slightly breathless from the medicine. She wiggled around until she was laying on top of him, her face buried in his stomach, where she was still brushing her cheeks against his skin. Putting her head to the side, she surprised Kylo by blowing a raspberry on his abdomen, eliciting a flinch from him at first, but as she continued to do so, he settled in and merely laughed at her silliness, batting at her buns as she tried to get a reaction out of him.

After multiple raspberries and having to stop because she soon found herself significantly out of breath, Rey raised her head and glared accusingly at Kylo "Aren't you ticklish?" she demanded, frustrated by not being able to make him squirm under her touch. He simply shrugged in response "No, I can't remember ever being ticklish...though it might also be the tea; I don't think I would really be able to react to much in the state I'm in."

Rey smoothed her hand back and forth over his skin, wishing she could feel him all over her own body "I should tell you something" she finally spoke, looking up at him from where her chin rested on his stomach. "What is it?" he asked, brushing a finger down the bridge of her nose. Her gaze wandered as she resumed playing her fingers in weird patterns, this time on the palm of his hand; "Rey. What?" he asked again, flicking his finger against her earlobe this time. "Hm?" she lazily roused herself out of her daydream "What?" he tugged at her ear "You said you wanted tell me something." She squinted up her eyes, trying to arrange her thoughts so that she could form a coherent verbal interpretation "Um, yeah. I do, just let me figure out what it was." Kylo reached down and took her face in both his hands, tipping it up so she faced him "Was it something important you wanted to tell me? Or can it wait until you are feeling more like yourself?" Rey shook her head a little "It's important. About last night." She took a deep breath, finding it hard to construct a meaningful chain of thought, inhibited as she was "Didn't want to say anything before. Wasn't ready. I'm ready now."

Kylo listened intently as Rey told him about everything she'd experienced the night before, his eyes lighting up as she described the feeling of slipping out of her body and the memories she saw when she touched her own cheek; he was fascinated by the new developments in her abilities, and wanted to help her explore them further as soon as she was feeling better. He grew serious when she got to the part where she touched him, a frown growing across his face as he listened to her recount the vision she had of this other version of him and the way it had made her feel. When she was done, he remained quiet for a while, considering everything she'd told him.

Feeling the effects of Kylo's medicine growing stronger, Rey let her head fall to the side again, relishing the feeling of his skin on her cheek, and wanting to remain in that state of half-wakefulness for the entirety of the foreseeable future. Kylo let her drift off, making the decision to not pursue the topic of her second vision at that point in time; there was no rush to discuss such unpleasant ideas right then and there. They had plenty of time to focus on the training and exploration of Rey's power; he could explain his past to her another day, a day far in the future, he told himself, absently running a hand over her hair, the only information about him that Rey needed to know right then was whatever pertained to helping her learn and grow in strength. There would be a time and place for her to know all, but that day was not soon, and he wouldn't change that as long as he was able.

Looking down at Rey as she dozed on his stomach, Kylo was a little overcome; she never pressed him to tell her about himself and his past, even when he had revealed the presence of great violence there and his love for it. She had been troubled by it, but trusted that he wasn't going to hurt her, and left it at that. This luminous little soul, possessing such great light and strength of character, had placed herself in his care, trusting him completely; even when her first instinct was to hide that vision from him, she had told him everything, not doubting his own character in the least. It tore at his heart to keep her from truly knowing him, but he knew it was necessary, at least for now.


	16. Chapter 16

Rey's recovery was remarkably fast, and within a day or two, she was begging Kylo to let her return to her training to she could hunt down the manticore that had injured her. Though he was swayed by her pretty attempts at persuasion, Kylo was reluctant to grant her wish, worrying that she would re-injure herself if allowed to jump back into training without healing properly. On the other hand, she was bored and restless, and he genuinely felt sorry for her not being able to be up and active the way she had been before the whole ordeal. Deciding he could afford to compromise a bit, Kylo waited until she had gone to bed - she went to bed quite early, considering the minimal change in light - and been asleep several hours before getting up and dressing himself, donning the cloak that he usually wore to venture deep into the forest. He roused Rey from the dead of slumber, shaking her roughly "Rey, wake up, we have work to do." She groaned sluggishly and rolled to look up at him "What the fuck, Ren? What time is it?" He smirked inwardly, both at her use of his surname (which she had started to do to let him know she was cross with him) and at her picking up his habit of swearing, a trait that she had at first been averse to.

He tossed her clothes at her "I'll be waiting outside, hurry up." "You mean you're not going to watch me get naked?" She called after him cheekily, expecting him to come striding back in and pounce on her. Instead, all she got was a reply that sounded like it came from way over by his armory "Don't dawdle, we've no time for silliness." Scowling at the rejection, Rey yanked on her breeches, grumbling fiercely as she did so "No time for silliness? You have plenty of time for 'silliness' when I'm squirming around underneath you. You didn't think it was 'silliness' the other day when you spotted me brushing my hair in just my shift and then dragged me over to the bed and fucked me senseless bent over that horrid old chest. My nipples were chafed for a damned week"

She was soon dressed and expressed her displeasure by stomping out to the yard, demanding to know by the gods where they were going, and why it had to be at that foul hour. Ignoring Rey's outrage, Kylo threw her a sack with and told her simply "We might be gone for a while, here, take this." looking through the bag, she found some bread, meat and cheese inside, about enough for a day. "It's the middle of the night, why are we packing for a trip?" she asked, still greatly annoyed by his refusal to explain where they were going and why. "You do remember that day is barely any different from nighttime, right?" she asked as he disappeared into the armory "Why can't we just go back to bed and then go once we've slept a while longer?" he soon emerged with their weapons and tossed her her staff "Don't worry, this isn't another hunt," he said in response to the frown that grew over her face "we just have to be prepared for every possible threat. As far as the difference between day and night in here, you are right, it isn't much in terms of the amount of light. The significant difference lies in the celestial bodies; I have a hypothesis or two about the nature of your abilities, and I want to test out their limits a bit."

At the mention of exploring her powers, Rey's mood shifted immediately "How does the moon have any effect on my power?" she asked, now very interested in his reasoning. Kylo was busy buckling the sling that held his staff, but he called over his shoulder to answer her "I think I may know what kind of creature your mother was; I've had suspicions about it for a while, but your last encounter with your power has strengthened those suspicions, and I want to put them to the test." he brushed past her as he started off on the trail leading out of the yard and through his wards. Rey stood there for a moment, thinking about what he had told her, before whirling around and dashing after him "Hey! You never said you had an idea of what the other half of my parentage might be, what are your ideas?" he didn't even look back as he continued on his way "I'll tell you all about them once I've collected more evidence; it will be far easier to explain afterward than to try and lay out all the possibilities first."

They trekked on for what felt like days to Rey, she marveled at his ability to make his way through the dense forest so confidently, when she had lost track of where they were almost immediately after losing sight of the cave. The path was narrow, and for a time, she trotted along behind Kylo, having to jog for several paces every now and then to match his long stride; their path cleared after a while, however, and she was happy to be able to travel at his side. Working up a bit of courage - because she still sometimes felt hesitant in initiating affection outside of the bedroom - she shyly reached out and slipped her small hand into his large gloved one. Kylo promptly pulled his hand from her grasp, making her heart sink and angry tears spring to her eyes as she dropped her head and fell back a few paces, kicking at rocks and plants along the path. _"What the hell?"_ she thought to herself, her hurt feelings summoning a hard lump to her throat _"What's wrong with him?"_ She kept her eyes cast down, not wanting him to read her feelings on her face, and focusing on the backs of his feet to keep from wandering off in the wrong direction.

The combination of Kylo's long strides and Rey's slowing pace, quickly created a distance between them, and she lost sight of his feet for a while; stubbornly not wanting to look up, she continued to keep her eyes down until she realized that he had stopped and was waiting for her. As soon as she was within arm's length, he reached out with his bare and grabbed hers firmly, intertwining their fingers and mumbling something about how much of a pain it was to unbuckle his wrist straps. Still keeping her head down, this time to hide her smile, Rey flush all the way to the tips of her ears, her heart wanting to leap out of her chest as she picked up her own pace, any unhappiness she had previously felt, completely forgotten. She was so happy, in fact, that she didn't even notice when Kylo had started talking again; she was only vaguely aware of his voice as she half-skipped along, lost in her own happy musings. It took him calling her name several times, and finally jostling her hand, for her to look up, completely unaware of what he'd been telling her "What?" she asked obliviously. He smiled, rolling his eyes at her inattentiveness "We're here."

They stood on the edge of a clearing. In it's center lay a large pool, fed by a stream that flowed over a low waterfall of rocks. The trees that grew around the border of the clearing reached up to the sky, creating an almost perfectly circular hole in the canopy above, allowing bright beams of moon and star light to shine down onto the pool, bathing it in an opalescent glow. Rey hadn't seen the sky or any of the heavenly bodies in so long that she stood like a statue for a few moments, transfixed by the beauty she beheld; feeling more at home than she had ever felt in her life. The feeling was so strong that she didn't even notice the tears streaming down her face until Kylo gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. Feeling suddenly self-conscious, Rey scrubbed at her eyes with a sleeve, confused that such a simple think had affected her so strongly, and guilty that she hadn't immediately thought of her mother when her heart yearned for home.

"What is it, Rey? What do you feel?" His voice was soft and low, full of caring concern and she could see it on his face when she lifted hers to look at him, smiling brightly through her tears "I'm so happy and also sad at the same time; happy because I feel like I've discovered something deeply important to my identity - though I don't really know what that means yet - and sad, because I wish my mother could see me and understand who I am." Kylo waved his hand, gesturing toward the moon and stars above them "I know that this is a lot to take in, and it's hard, but in a way, the moon _is_ your mother, and the stars your sisters."

Seeing the confused look on her face, he continued to explain; "I strongly believe, and have for a while, that your mother was one of the Asteriae - celestial nymphs who draw their power from the moon and surrounding stars. They say the moon birthed them all, and they often live near pools like this one that have soaked up the moonlight for hundred, of not thousands of years. Now, look here." He motioned her over to join him as he crouched down by the water's edge "Look at your eyes. You remember when I asked if you were having any troubles with your vision? That's why." Rey leaned over and stared at her reflection in the mirror smooth surface, putting a hand to her mouth when she say it: her eyes were glowing. Not like Kylo's did, with their unnerving green iridescence; her eyes were lit with a soft bluish lavender hue, identical to that of the moonlight around them. "What is that?" She asked in soft wonderment, "I've never seen it before." He rose to his feet again "It's been growing for a while, you've noticed changes, yes?" she nodded "Well, yes, but I never thought that my eyes were actually changing, just getting used to the lack of sunlight." "You've been changing since the day you knocked me down in the forest," he said with a smile "Little by little you've been growing."

He pulled his hand out of Rey's and smoothed it over her hair "It's very rare that Asteriae reproduce at all, much less with a creature as irreverent as a satyr. Your parents must have had quite an interesting story indeed." "'Have had'" Rey repeated his words "Do you think my parents, both of them, are dead, Kylo?" he looked down at her, eyes roaming her face, searching for the right words to reassure her "Truth be told, I don't know. Someone knew enough about fauns to know that you would be safe and embraced by them. I don't know the nature of how the asteriae raise their young, but satyrs don't have a history of being dependable parents. Perhaps the more we learn about you and your abilities, the more we'll have to go on."

His words were kind, and she nodded, sniffling a little and wiping a sleeve over her eyes "You're right, of course." it took her a moment, but she composed herself and squared her shoulders "Alright then! What did you want to teach me here?" Kylo turned back toward the pool and pointed toward a rock that sat near the center of it "This pool has sat here for centuries, soaking up the light of the moon and stars; I believe that an asteria once called this place home, and she was the one who created it. My theory is that if you set yourself on that rock and reach out with your power, you can commune with the echo of the nymph and ask her to grant you a bond with her pool, taking both it's power and her memories; then perhaps you will have a better understanding of what you possess than what I could ever teach you."

"Well that sounds easy enough," Rey said with a little laugh and began stripping off her clothes, an action that drew sideways glances from Kylo as she dropped each piece of clothing to the ground "Are you sure that's...necessary?" he remarked, swallowing and clenching his jaw a few times. "My power is based in my sexuality and sensuality, right?" she answered with a teasing lilt to her voice "It makes sense that I go in with my body bare and nothing to come between me and whatever I find there." He merely nodded in response, folding his arms over his chest and stared at the ground between his feet, a pensive frown on his face. Rey paused at the edge of the water, her foot poised to step into it "Are you worried for me, Kylo?" He ran an anxious hand through his hair "Of course I am. There's no guarantee that you won't be rejected, and if you are, it'll be my fault." She raised a hand and laid it against his face in a caressing motion "You're guiding me to my own destiny. Any action I take is of my own free will." With that, she took one of his hands in her own and kissed each of his knuckles before turning and striding into the limpid water.

*I'm sorry for the lack of editing! I'm super busy these days and just wanted to get it posted.

Thanks for reading!


	17. Chapter 17

As the water enveloped her, Rey was shocked at the effect it had on her skin; in every place it had touched her, the water left a luminous sheen, mimicking the glow of the moon itself. Lifting her arms from the water, Rey inspected her hands, turning them this way and that, studying the way they glistened in the moonlight. "Kylo, are you seeing this?" She called out, "It's like the water is leaving some kind of shimmer on my skin, look!"

His voice was quiet in it's reply, making Rey turn to look at him "Or maybe it is simply revealing what was already there." he said.

Looking into his eyes, Rey saw a mixture of awe and fascination on his face, though as she turned away, she could have sworn she saw an underlying look of triumph lurking behind his smile. Ignoring that feeling, Rey turned back around and resumed wading deeper into the pool. In addition to the strange visual effects of the water, Rey was also surprised by it's temperature. She had expected it to be icy cold, given the coolness of the forest and the time of night. However, as soon as she dipped her toe into its depths, she sensed something strange about the way it felt.

The water was far from cool, in fact it felt more to Rey, like a bath that had been drawn and forgotten for several hours, losing the majority of its heat, but not quite cold either. What was more, the water felt hot and cold at once; it was a feeling almost completely unfamiliar to Rey, until she remembered a certain tea her mother used to make her when Rey had a sore stomach. _"What was the name she called it?"_ Rey thought to herself, skimming her memories for the right words. _"Oh that's right. It was wintergreen."_ She remembered how the herb had tasted warm while at the same time, very cold, and that, when she was little, she thought it was magic.

Kylo had said that she should swim to the rock that sat in the middle of the pool, but Rey's instincts had other ideas. She couldn't explain why, but something told her that she should explore the bottom of the pool first; there was something there that she needed, or maybe it was something that needed her? She couldn't tell, but the feeling was insistent. Deciding to trust her intuition, Rey took a deep breath and dove beneath the sparkling water.

From the first time that her toes had touched water as a babe, Rey had been an excellent swimmer. Her mother had marveled at the way her tiny daughter took to the water the first time she had taken Rey to the river. Nara often joked that perhaps one of Rey's parents had been a river otter. Rey had laughed it off, but some part of her did wonder if her affinity for the water had come from one or both of the parents she never got the chance to know.

As her eyes adjusted to her new surroundings, Rey was immediately aware of two very odd things about the pool: the first being that, now that she was beneath the waters surface, she could see that the rock in the center of the body of water was not an island as first suspected, but was floating freely and unmoving in its place. The second was that the small lake was vastly deeper than it appeared to be from above ground. Long arms of emerald-green water vines stretched up from its sandy bottom, swaying gently around her as she swam, continuing her descent into the depths.

As she went, Rey found it quite curious that the rays of light filtering down through the water and aquatic flora, never seemed to dim; looking around, she discovered that even though some of the moon's rays were brighter than others, they maintained the same level of saturation all the way down to the deepest part of the tiny lake.

Drawing closer to the lake floor, Rey noticed a soft glow emanating from a clump of water grasses that lay on the its floor, directly below the floating rock. As she hovered above it, it occurred to her that she hadn't needed to come up for air the entire time she'd been under the water. She had no concept of how long she'd been swimming, but even as she thought about it at that moment, she felt no need to take a breath. _"I wonder how long I've been down here,"_ she thought _"if it's been too long, Kylo will worry."_ Rey glanced upward over her shoulder toward the bank of the pool, but could not make out anything from such a great distance.

Not wanting her lover to become unnecessarily concerned for her safety, Rey almost turned back to convene with him before going any further in her exploration, but as she thought about making for the surface, a voice inside of her held her back _"No."_ it said _"Keep going, you need to do this. Now and on your own."_ Finding the feeling insistent, Rey kicked out with her feet and dove down to investigate whatever was causing the faint lavender glow.

Reaching her destination, Rey put out her hand and parted the grass carefully, doing her best to be as gentle as possible, not knowing what she would find. Nestled there in the center was a small, slightly oval stone; it glowed in the water, emanating a soft pale bluish glow, the source of the light that had drawn Rey to its hiding place to begin with.

As she took the stone in her hand, Rey felt as if she heard the faint echo of a voice flitting through her mind. She couldn't make out words, but the _feeling_ she experienced was unmistakable: she had to swim upwards; the stone knew where it needed to be, and it would guide her there. As she made her ascent, swimming with the stone held out in front of her like a beacon, Rey took notice of the fact that she seemed to be swimming considerably faster than she had on the way down; the more time went by, the more she was sure that she was steadily increasing in speed, although she made almost no movement on her own. It was like the stone wanted to be brought to the surface even more than she did.

Rey surfaced right next to the floating rock, bursting from the water, eyes darting around immediately in search of Kylo. He was crouched at the very edge of the pool, stripped down to his breeches and appeared to be preparing to dive into the water after her.

Catching sight of Rey, he jumped to his feet, "Rey! Are you alright? You were down there for so long, I was worried you were hurt." His wild eyes and the almost imperceptible tremble in his lower lip told her that she had been gone much longer than she realized, and he was near frantic in his concern.

She nodded "I'm fine. It only felt like a few minutes, I'm sorry I worried you." she reassured him "But look what I found at the bottom directly underneath this rock." Opening her palm, Rey held up the stone she had retrieved from the pool floor "What do you think it is?"

Kylo squinted at the stone in her hand, his brow furrowed in concern and curiosity "I can't tell from here, Rey. Come out and let me take a look."

Rey shook her head "I can't yet. There's still something I have to do." and with that, she hauled herself out of the water and onto the rock she'd been clinging to.

Kylo watched with concern as she settled herself on the rock; sitting cross-legged with her back straight, she closed her eyes, holding the glowing stone clutched to her chest and reaching out with her mind for instructions on what to do next.

As she waited for some kind of response, she began to hear a soft, rhythmic hum echoing in her mind. It took her a few minutes before realizing it's origin: the stone she held pressed above her heart, it was singing.

While Rey contemplated all the reasons for a singing stone, the reply came gradually, growing in the back of her mind, out of the corner of her eye, stealing up her spine, like something that had always been there but remained silent and unseen. Taking a deep breath, Rey turned her full focus on pinning down that fleeting sensation, and it unfolded before her like a blooming flower; a quiet voice from deep inside her whispered into her thoughts _"What is it you seek, little sister?"_ Though no words were spoken, Rey felt the message strongly, and she answered in kind; not with words, but her yearning for knowledge: who she was, where she came from, and whether she was all alone in the world.

The response broke her heart: _"All that is left of us is clutched to your heart, dear one. We returned home to the night sky long ago. You are alone."_

A hard lump sprang into Rey's throat, tears welling behind her eyes _"But WHY?"_ She thought angrily _"Why was I abandoned, left all alone as a baby? Why did no one care for me, love me enough to stay?"_ She received no answer this time, merely the soft hum of the gem clenched in her hand. _"What am I supposed to do now?"_ She thought, despair flooding her heart _"I had so many hopes pinned on finding some kind of kin somewhere, and now that's...nothing. I have nothing."_ Feeling completely overwhelmed by her revelations, and a deep, all-encompassing sense of loss, Rey collapsed on the rock, curling into a fetal position, her body wracked with the dry heaves that tore from her chest.

As the heaving turned to sobs, Rey felt two strong arms circling around her and pulling her from her perch, a perch that had rapidly begun to sink into the depths below. Kylo pulled her shaking form to his chest and swam for shore, hauling Rey from the water and clutching her to him.

"Rey, what happened?" he asked, the worry apparent in his voice. "Are you alright? What did you learn? What do you need?"

Unable to form coherent speech, Rey merely held on to him tightly, her cries muffled in the skin of his shoulder. She only managed to gasp out a few words in between her gasps "I want my mother! Kylo, I need my mother!"

Without a word, Kylo dressed Rey as quickly as he could, then wrapped her in his cloak and slung her onto his back. Shoving his breeches to the ground, he dropped to his hands and knees, every muscle contracting as he transformed into the huge black wolf. In an instant, they were off, flying through the forest at incredible speeds, the wind whipping at Rey's clothes, Kylo's paws making almost no noise as they pounded against the loamy earth.

After what felt like no time at all to Rey, Kylo's pace began to slow from a full sprint to a lope; lifting her head, Rey could see that they had reached the edge of the forest.

Coming to a halt just inside the forest boundary, Kylo remained still for a few minutes before turning to Rey "We still have a few hours of complete darkness left. That should be enough." and made off toward the direction of her village.

When they reached the tiny village, Kylo let Rey slide gently to the ground not far from her mother's hut before nuzzling her face with his snout and wandering off into a nearby meadow, laying down where he could keep an eye on her.

Suppressing her tears, Rey crept to the hut's entrance, her voice trembling as she called out a whispered "Mama? Mama, are you there?"

The flap covering the entrance of the tent was drawn back and Nara's wide eyed face was illuminated in the moonlight "Rey? Are my eyes deceiving me? Is that really you, my littlest one?" she whispered hoarsely.

"It's me, mama." she answered, finally dissolving into tears.

Nara caught her daughter in her arms and held her as tightly as she could until the girl's sobs faded into long, deep breaths, punctuated by the occasional sniffle. Stroking a hand over Rey's wet, matted hair, she murmured quietly in her ear "What's happened, my love? What's hurt you so deeply? Please tell me."

Rey managed to choke out the story of what she had found out from her adventure at the asteria's lake; how she was the last of her kind and had been abandoned as a baby, of no particular consequence to anyone.

Nara listened intently, occasionally smoothing a hand over Rey's face as she recounted her story. When she finished, Nara kissed her forehead and drew it down to rest against her chest "That is an incredible tale indeed my dear, but I fail to see how you came to the conclusion that no one loved or cared for you."

Rey lifted her head and stared at her adoptive mother in disbelief "I was left all alone as an infant, mama. How could anyone who loved me or cared for me do that?"

Her mother smiled and laughed softly "Yes, but who did they leave you with? A human bandit who would have sold you as a pet? No, they brought you to this village; to me, who has raised a host of willful daughters, and dearly loved each one. Whoever left you as a child took great care to see that you would be well taken care of and loved. Surely you can see that?"

Rey couldn't help but see her point; her life could have been vastly harder than it was. Though she often complained of having such a boring life, it had been a safe and joyful one, she had to admit.

"It also seems that you have found friends." Nara's voice broke through Rey's thoughts "I've never seen such a magnificent animal." she continued, nodding at Kylo where he remained sitting in the meadow nearby "Care to introduce me?"

Blushing deeply, Rey drew a sleeve across her damp face, and nodded, intertwining her fingers with Nara's, and leading her to where Kylo was, making him rise to his feet as they drew near.

"Mama, this is Kylo Ren. He's a warlock and he's been teaching me how to use my abilities. I don't know what I'd do without him."

Nara stepped towards Kylo "A warlock, you say? So he's a human, though it seems he is hiding that fact right now." she said the last part with a low laugh as she looked him over. Then, reaching out and clasping both sides of his wolfy face, she looked deeply into his glowing eyes "Kylo _Ren_ , is it? I see." her expression was unreadable, though the way she emphasized his surname triggered Rey's attention. Nara continued, "What do you see in my daughter, shapeshifter? Why should I have peace of mind at her being in your care?"

Kylo glanced over at Rey and made a little nudging motion with his nose. Her brow furrowed in confusion for a split second before she remembered that she was still wearing his cloak. Taking it from her own shoulders, she threw it around his.

Kylo closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, feeling the pain of transformation coming on. The next minute he was standing before them, tall and wrapped in black. Opening his eyes, he immediately knelt down on one knee before Rey's mother.

"Rey is exceptional in every way." he said. "She is kind, generous, fearless, and fiercely passionate. I am deeply honored and privileged that she is allowing me to teach her, and," he took a deep breath here "and, I love her very much."

Rey's mouth dropped open at his words, here eyes flashing from Kylo, to her mother, and back to Kylo again, completely at a loss for words.

Nara made no immediate answer, preferring to look him over and contemplate his words. Glancing at Rey's flabbergasted expression, she allowed herself the smallest of smiles "Well, Kylo Ren. I do hope that you are prepared to protect my daughter with every power you possess. I expect nothing less than absolute devotion to her and her learning, is that clear?"

Kylo was nodding solemnly when Rey burst out "Mama! Why aren't you upset? I've just told you that I'm a strange hybrid creature who possesses not entirely as yet known powers. Why do you not seemed concerned at all?"

Nara smiled "Do you want me to be angry that you are spreading your wings and learning about yourself? I am overjoyed, my dear. I have always known you were different, and wanted nothing else than to see you happy and excited about your life. I see that your time with this human has done exactly that. So, far be it from me to discourage it. Though…" she trailed off, a cloud passing over her normally bright features "Though you two should never let your guard down. I don't know that your plan for the future is, but be aware that many creatures would disapprove of the closeness you two share. You must protect yourselves and each other, no matter what."

Rey retained the confused look on her face while Kylo placed a hand over his heart "I do understand, and you are right; many beings, human and not alike, would be very opposed to our relationship. But I promise you that we will be as careful as possible, and I will teach Rey to be as strong as she can, and protect her with my life if I have to."

Rey's mother gave a small smile in response to Kylo's words "Very well, Kylo Ren, I will entrust you with the light of my life. Now," she turned to look over her shoulder "the dawn is fast approaching, and neither of you will be welcome in this place when the village awakens. You should go."

Flinging her arms around her mother, Rey choked out her goodbyes, promising to visit again and professing her love profusely.

Nara hugged her daughter closely and gazed over Rey's shoulder at Kylo, her expression unreadable.

When they were done saying their goodbyes, Kylo dropped to his hands and knees again, once more taking on the shape of his wolf.

Rey took his cloak from his shoulders and wrapped herself in it before hauling herself up onto his back and, with a last lingering look at her mother, they were gone.

When they at last reached their cave, Kylo and Rey were near exhausted; not bothering to change their clothes, Kylo merely washed his hands and feet while Rey cast off all unnecessary garments, and they collapsed into bed.

Rey was just beginning to drift into a deep slumber when a sudden realization snapped her awake. Sitting bolt upright in bed, she half shrieked "Kylo! The stone I found at the bottom of the pool, it's gone!"

The urgency of Rey's voice had brought Kylo around violently, and he too sat upright, though his eyes were bleary and he didn't seem to catch on to her words right away.

Meanwhile, Rey had scrambled out of bed and was yanking the bedding apart, looking for her strange gemstone "Help me look!" she cried "I'm such an idiot! I can't believe I lost it."

Once he roused himself enough to realize what Rey was trying to tell him, Kylo watched her for a moment before calling her attention to him "Rey. Rey, look at me, where did you last have it.?"

She stood up, throwing her hands in the air and still staring around wildly "I had it since you dragged me out of the water. I can't remember ever letting go of it. I was so upset, and then I saw my mother, and that's all I could think about until we got here."

Nodding while he listened to her, he caught hold of her wrists, something having just caught his eye, and held her still "Rey wait, let me see something." he said, pulling her over to him.

Rey resisted at first, not wanting to abandon her search, but he insisted, and she allowed him to inspect her hands.

Holding up the hand that had held the stone, Kylo focused his vision, his eyes glowing even more brightly than usually as he stared at her palm. "I think I found it, Rey," he finally spoke.

"Found it? What do you mean?" she demanded "That's impossible."

Grasping her forearm with one of his hands hand, Kylo lifted the other and let his magic flow from it in a sort of transparent cloud that swirled around Rey's hand.

Rey gasped; in response to Kylo's magic, an oval of bright, bluish-lavender light had begun to glow at the center of her palm and, radiating away from that light, a delicate, vine-like pattern of the same hued light. "Kylo, what is that?" she asked as soon as she caught her breath "What does it mean?"

"It means," he answered as he withdrew his magic, causing the marks on Rey's hand to fade and disappear "that my initial assumption that this was a focus crystal, like the one in my staff, was wrong. Rather, it seems that you are now in possession of the soul stone of several generations of asteriae."

Holding up her hand and turning it every which way, looking for any trace of the markings that had now vanished, Rey turned to Kylo in earnest "I don't understand. What is a soul stone?"

He had sat back down on the bed and leaned back on the pillows with a tired sigh, wincing as he relaxed, _"No doubt the consequence of shifting so many times in such a short span of time"_ Rey thought with a small spasm of guilt. "A soul stone is the coalescence of thoughts, hopes and memories of one or more individuals. They are incredibly rare, and cannot be purposely created. My guess is that the pool we visited belonged to many asteriae over the centuries, and collected some essence of each nymph who called it home, gradually creating the stone you found at the bottom of said pond."

"But why is it in my hand now?" Rey asked with a frown "And is it dangerous?"

Kylo pondered her question for a few moments before answering "No, I don't believe it is dangerous to you. I think what happened, was the soul stone sensed your asteriae powers, and reacted, wanting to merge with that familiar energy." He had closed his eyes as he spoke, and was now reaching out for Rey to come lay her head on his chest "Come now, we can talk more about this once we've slept for a decade or so."

Rey laughed, realizing just then how incredibly tired she was. Crawling over to Kylo, she snuggled into his side and slung her arm over his torso "Fine. But we have a lot to talk about when we wake up."

"Do we?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow without opening his eyes "And what, pray tell, would be all this that we need to discuss?"

"Well first of all, you need to tell me more about the nature of soul stones, and how it will affect me, and if I can use it to my advantage or not. Also," she continued, drawing shapes on his stomach with her finger "I think it's about time you tell me how you know so much about me, and my heritage and abilities; because don't think I haven't noticed how quickly you come up with an answer for every one of my questions."

Here Kylo groaned "Mm you do have a lot of questions; as far as how I know so much about you, I hardly thi-"

"And _lastly_ ," Rey cut him off "We talk about how you blindsided me by telling my mother that you _love_ me. Because what the hell was that? You have _never_ said you love me before."

Kylo's eyes had popped open, and he seemed to be at a loss for words. Once he had collected himself, he cleared his throat nervously and hugged Rey more tightly to his side "Right. I supposed I might have been overzealous in that regard. However," he continued "Nothing I said was a lie. I like your mother instantly, and I feel that she is a very trustworthy person. Now," he laid his hand over Reys eyes, as they had been growing wider and wider as he spoke and he didn't want to allow her a rebuttal at that point "we both need our rest. I will not discuss this with you further, so goodnight."

It was about an hour later, and Kylo had long since drifted off, his even breathing and light snoring telling Rey that he was fast asleep. But Rey hadn't yet succumbed to slumber; she was still in the thralls of having just heard her lover profess his love for her, and she was too elated to sleep.

" _He really stood there and told my mother that he loves me."_ she couldn't help but replay the even over and over in her head, making her wriggle with joy each time she did so.

When she finally did drift off, it was with a smile on her face.


	18. Chapter 18

The next time Rey awoke, all was quiet except for the sound of the deep, even breathing coming from the man slumbering next to her. Rolling onto her side to face him, Rey propped herself on on one elbow and, leaning her chin on the palm of her hand, studied his face as he slept. He looked so peaceful in his sleep that she was overcome by the warmth of her feelings when she remembered how he had told her mother that he loved her "very much" without any kind of prompting or hesitation. She still hadn't told him that she felt the same way, but she knew without a doubt in her mind, that she did indeed love this mysterious man with all of her heart, despite knowing next to nothing about his past and where he had come from.

As she lay there thinking, Rey had reached out and smoothed her hand over his bare chest; she had always loved the feeling of his skin under her fingertips, and liked the way he shuddered under her touch, even in sleep.

"Rey" he muttered, turning his head toward her slightly, without waking up.

She smiled, happy that she was still occupying his thoughts, despite being lost in his dreams. A mischievous light stealing into her eyes, Rey slipped her hand under the waistband of Kylo's pants; watching his face closely for any sign of waking, she let her fingers trail over the head of his cock, feeling the muscles in his abdomen tighten ever so lightly in response.

Feeling herself becoming more brave, Rey curled the fingers of both hands under the waistband of his pants and gently slid them off his hips, revealing his cock where it lay flaccid against his stomach. Her eyes lit up as she gazed at him, remembering what Kylo had done to her with that cock and all the things he'd made her feel. Feeling curious, she reached out and took it in her hand, feeling its weight and smoothing her fingers along its length, her thumb tracing the veins that stood out under the skin. Leaning down, she placed a kiss at the base of the shaft, relishing the feeling of it's soft skin against her lips. Rey continued her exploration, trailing her tongue up the shaft of Kylo's cock and taking the head into her mouth when she reached the tip and sucking on it lightly, noticing how it had been steadily growing hard under her ministrations.

It was around that time that she noticed the sound Kylo's rhythmic breathing had ceased and, glancing up, she caught sight of him staring at her, his yellow eyes glowing in an unreadable expression.

Rey blushed deeply and pulled her mouth off of him with a wet 'pop', and began to stutter out an embarrassed explanation:

"I-I didn't mean to wake you, I was just, uh, curious and you were sleeping so peacefully and, well…" she trailed off, completely losing track of what she'd been trying to say and feeling foolish and exposed.

Kylo reached down and twisted his fingers in her hair, tugging her toward him "Come here." he half whispered/half growled as he drew her in, kissing her until she was breathless.

When Rey pulled back to catch her breath, Kylo started kissing her neck, beginning to make his way down to her breasts, but she stopped him, leaning away.

"Can I-" she blushed again, shyly glancing away and twisting her fingers into the bedding beneath them "can I keep going? You do love to please me that way...I want to try to do the same for you. Please let me?"

His eyes glinted fiercely as he studied her face, and it was clear that he wanted to flip her over, pin her underneath him and fuck her until she screamed, but he just nodded and let her slip down again, keeping his hand curled in her hair.

Rey turned her attention back to his growing erection and slipped her mouth over it again, taking it in deeper this time and keeping her tongue pressed to its underside, sucking as she moved her head up and down slowly, testing her limits.

As she moved, Rey took close note of all Kylo's responses, smiling inwardly to herself as she heard his breath start to get shaky, and his fingers tighten their grip on her hair. As she took him further into her mouth, she heard him moan her name softly; she sound was like music to her ears and she moaned gently in response, bobbing her head faster and quickening her pace, feeling the way the muscles in his thighs and stomach began to tighten.

"Rey, I'm close." he groaned, tugging on her hair and again trying to draw her up to him, but only succeeding in setting her determination.

Grasping his thighs, Rey leaned in deeper until the tip of Kylo's cock hit the back of her throat. Willing her gag reflex away, she focused all her efforts on finishing him, sucking harder, and letting her saliva drip down his cock and over his balls. The cave echoed with the sounds of their combined gasps and moans along with the lewd sound of her wet sucking.

With one of his hands still anchored in her hair, Kylo reached down with the other and gripped one of Rey's horns between his thumb and two fingers, rubbing the pad of his thumb up and down its short length, making Rey whimper and almost distracting her from her task.

When she began to feel him bearing down on his climax, she reached down and caressed his balls gently, giving them a light squeeze and sending him over the edge as he shot his load into her mouth.

Rey knew what happened when Kylo came, but she hadn't ever been that up close when it happened, and in her surprise, pulled up off of him, his seed spilling out from her mouth, the subsequent spurts hitting her chest and stomach. Despite her shock, she relished his musky flavor and swallowed it down, licking it from her swollen lips and looking up at him with a happily dazed expression.

With a groan, Kylo grabbed her face with both hands and jerked her up, kissing her roughly before throwing her over his lap, yanking down her small clothes and delivering a few solid slaps to her ass.

Rey yelped in surprise "I thought you were done!" she cried.

"Oh, I am far from done with you, little satyrkind." he laughed darkly and reached under her, smoothing his hand over the outer area of her sex, making her squirm in response. He teased her several more times before sinking his two middle fingers into her wet heat, his free arm laid over her back to hold her still, and began pumping them in and out in a steady rhythm, stroking her exactly where he knew it affected her the most.

Rey whimpered and writhed under Kylo's touch, her face flushing a bright crimson as she tried to keep her voice steady "If you already want to go again, you might as well just put it in me now." she said in a breathy whisper, partially because of his fingers and partially because she was still incredibly embarrassed by anything resembling dirty talk.

Kylo laughed again at her shyness "Put what inside you, Rey?" he asked, curling his fingers and wringing another gasp from her throat.

"Ah! Oh, you know!" she whined "Do I really have to say it?"

He smiled as he ran his free hand down her back and smoothed his fingers over her ass before spreading one of his large hands over a cheek and squeezing it hard, humming in approval as he watched the reddened outline of his hand spread over the area "Of course I'm going to make you say it. I love the way you blush and bite your lips when you tell me what you want me to do to you."

Rey drew her brows together in frustration. There were few things in the world she loved more than the feeling of Kylo's cock breaching her for the first time every time they made love. And even though she loved it all, it irked her to no end that he took such great pleasure in making her say such filthy things before he would oblige her. This time her pride rose up at his teasing and, shoving her embarrassment down as deep as she could, she took a deep breath and turned to Kylo, giving him her most alluring smile and gazing up at him from beneath her long, feathery lashes, she spoke in the steadiest voice she could muster "Kylo, my love, _please_ fuck me. My pussy is just _aching_ for your cock."

He let out a strangled coughing noise and froze, his fingers ceasing their movements as he stared at Rey, his eyes blown wide, their snake-like pupils dilated to the point they looked almost circular.

For a half second, Rey's ego exploded; thinking she'd destroyed him, she was just opening her mouth to ask innocently if he was alright, when he blinked and, with joyful growl, flipped her, sending her rolling across the bed, a hand coming down on her back and pinning her in place, the other wrapping around her tail and pulling her ass up into an angle where he could plunge his length into her with a loud groan.

Rey's cries mingled with his own as she relished the feeling of her body stretching to accommodate him, her eyes falling closed and her fingers curling in the blankets beneath her.

They remained that way for several moments until Rey, growing impatient, began to arch her back and press herself closer to Kylo, urging him to continue.

He laughed quietly at her eagerness and obliged, rocking his hips shallowly to give her just a taste of what she wanted, wanting to torture her a bit more before giving her any satisfaction. Though he enjoyed tormenting Rey until she begged him, in the filthiest language, to fuck her, Kylo liked to take his time pleasing his lover and making sure she was more than satisfied. He leaned forward slightly, running his hands over her ass and then down to her sides, dragging his fingertips upward until he took hold over her hands and lifted them, pinning them on either side of her head as he began to move his hips in earnest.

Rey moaned softly into the pillow as Kylo increased the speed of his movements; lifting her hips to encourage him, she then leaned her head over and kissed the inside of his wrist, eliciting an impassioned "Mm!" from her partner, who let his head drop to hang between his arms, the ends of his hair trailing along Rey's shoulder before he began nipping at her ear and neck, making her arch her back and press up against him in her need for more contact.

Just as Rey was getting used to the rhythm he set, Kylo pulled out of her and flipped her onto her back, making her gasp before he pounced on her again, pushing her legs apart and and sheathing himself inside her once again, one hand grabbing her thigh and wrapping it around his hip as he thrust his cock into her as deeply as he could, his other hand he planted next to her head, allowing them to stare into the other's eyes. Kylo bit his lips until they were red and almost bleeding as he gazed down at Rey, taking in every inch of her with his hungry eyes. Slipping his hand under her neck, he slid it up til it cradled the back of her head, pulling her in for a kiss, maintaining a steady rhythm all the while.

Rey Responded by snaking her arms around him and locking her feet behind his waist, pulling him as deeply into her as she could, feeling like it was impossible to get close enough to him. At that moment, the tip of Kylo's cock found that sensitive area inside her, and she gripped him tightly, digging her fingernails into his back and letting out a keening whimper, recognizing that she wouldn't last much longer.

Kylo could feel his release bearing down on him as well, and did his best to keep to a pace that pleased her the most, though he was having a hard time not losing himself in the bliss that was her heat.

A few more strokes against her g-spot had Rey clenching around him as she tightened her inner muscles, rolling her hips in time with his thrusts. She loved that she could shatter his iron resolve with a few movements of her own, and soon felt his hips stutter against her as he struggled to keep from climaxing too soon. Leaning up, she whispered in his here "Just come, Kylo. It gets me off feeling you empty your cock inside of me."

He let out a desperate groan and gave several final wild thrusts and obeyed, his cock pulsing as it spilled his seed into her and pushed her over her own threshold. They came together, gasping out frenzied cries into each others mouths, and finally came to rest in a sticky, sweaty heap.

When Kylo finally pulled himself from her, it was only to tuck her under his arm and wrap a blanket around the both of them, settling in to fall asleep again. "You do know how to wreck me, don't you?" He said with a laugh as he ran his fingers through his hair.

Rey tried to cover her smug expression with one of injured innocence "I'm sure I have no idea what you mean." she protested "It's not my fault that you act like a wild animal who wants to devour me."

He only laughed and tousled her hair "And you have no hand in the way I feel about you? Alright." he shook his head and settled in against the pillows, closing his eyes and and absently stroking his fingers over her shoulder.

Kylo was just about to drift off when Rey's voice piped up again "Kylo, do you think I'm pregnant?"

His eyes popped open and he turned to stare down at her "Uh do you-do you _want_ to be?" He asked incredulously, unsure of how to react to her question.

Rey giggled at his shocked expression and shook her head "No! Of course not. But I do know how babies are made, and we haven't exactly been careful...we haven't been careful at all. I don't feel any different, but I figured it was inevitable after the way we've been carrying on."

"Oh." he answered, breathing a sigh of relief "No, you aren't pregnant. And you won't be unless we decide that's something we both really want." Seeing the confused look on Rey's face, he continued "I made sure that...my seed, wouldn't take root inside you. It's a spell common with warlocks and it never fails. So, if you want a child someday, that's something we can discuss, but we don't have to worry about that now."

Rey thought for a few moments and nestled deeper into his embrace "Oh. Alright. That's a relief. Though you could have told me, then I wouldn't have had to worry about it."

He kissed her forehead and nodded "You're right, I'm sorry. I suppose I just thought that you weren't thinking about it."

She yawned and closed her eyes "Well, next time you assume what I want, don't." she said, frowning and trying to seem stern.

"Your wish is my command, my love." he said with a smile. Then, just as she was drifting off, it was Kylo's voice that pulled her back. "Rey," he said, shaking her slightly.

"Mm" was the responding grunt.

"Rey, I didn't need to do my spell. I didn't hurt you this time. Nothing happened."

His only answer was her soft snoring, and he lay there, smiling in the darkness, unable to recall a time when he felt so incredibly loved and satisfied, wishing with all his might that they could continued like that into eternity.

It was a naive wish that was destined to be denied.

NOTE: Sorry for the absence! I've been super uninspired for this work lately. Hopefully I can pull myself out of my funk soon. Thanks to whoever's still reading!


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